Marked Wing
by Aelfric Maundrell
Summary: 100 years after the events of Firewing took place, Shade has decided to do a little experimenting. As his curiosity effects a newborn bat, new events are set in motion that threatens the balance of the world of the living, and the land of the dead.
1. Throughts

'**Thoughts'**

**-Shade-**  
_Death has been good to me all these years; I've been able to become as one with this earth. I've become everything I've ever wanted to in this forest; the trees my loved ones roost in, the wind through their fur, I've even whispered my love to them…Marina, I know she heard me, several times as my spirit roosted with her and Griffin each night._

I watched them grow old, I saw I my son mate with Luna and had children of his own. I saw Marina die…I was grateful she went peacefully and my heart soared when she arrived at my side. It was good to know that Frieda had found her and that she made it to the tree unharmed…I had my mate back, and, together, we watched my son raise his children. I was so proud of him, and yet, I was also saddened…he had grown into a fine young bat and became a wonderful father without me…I only wish I could have been there for him in more than just spirit.

I'm not saying I regret giving my life for him, oh no, I'm glad he could live on to show this world what he was made of…but I wish I could have been a bigger part of his life…I was scarcely older than a newborn! I should have lived longer!

After what I'm sure has been a hundred years, I feel regret and anger start to rise within me, but I can feel something else as well…curiosity. I've become so many things in this past century, but, there has been one thing I don't recall ever trying: becoming one with an impregnated female. I've become one with Marina's spirit many a time, but, after I died, she stayed loyal to my memory and never mated again…how I love her so much.

The thought has so often crossed my mind if it would be possible for me to be reborn. That, maybe, by becoming one with a female who was carrying a child within her, my soul would be accepted into the body of the unborn pup and I would be born again into the Silverwing Colony. Of course, after Griffin had joined us in death, my curiosity had subsided somewhat…but it never truly left me.

Finally, during the female's migration, I had my chance…

Normally, Marina, Griffin, and I would branch off with our separate gender's migration route, but after I told them what I had wanted to do, they had actually wondered the exact same thing. If it were possible, we were going to truly make it back into the land of the living…and we were going to do it together.

Before they started their flight back to Tree Haven, the three of us each picked a female. Our selection was totally random, but I felt like I had chose mine for a reason. My chosen female, I had found that Serena was her name, seemed different from the other mothers-to-be. While the others were talking excitedly about what they had decided to name their child, Serena shied away from them and she always seemed so sick with worry. What had happened to her that she wasn't excited about the child? Had her mate died? That seemed to be the only reason that I could think of that would make an expectant mother so upset.

While watching her one morning, as she was trying to sleep, I saw she was shaking, sobbing so hard that I could barely make out the muffled prayer she was saying. 'please, Nocturna.' she had said, 'please let this child live…I beg of you…let it live…' She was pleading to a Goddess who could do nothing about it, I felt that I could though…I could do something for her! I just needed to know more…

That night, she did not hunt, she went straight to the elders, hoping they had good news for her and her unborn pup. There was no such news for her…they had scoffed at her, telling her she was weak, that it was her fault that the child wouldn't live. If she had been strong enough to carry her child, she would have not have been blown off course, she would not have hit the tree so hard and the child within her would still be alive and growing.

My heart sank, or I had felt something much like it, as I heard them talk, it seems as though the kindness Frieda had once shown to all had been long since forgotten. It had never crossed my mind that mothers could be unfit to carry children, I never knew they could die before they were born…I knew they could die shortly afterwards, but before, I couldn't seem to wrap my mind around it…if I had heard such news when Griffin was to be born…I don't even wish to think about it…

The time had come, it was nearly time for the females to reach Tree Haven. The three of us wished each other luck and designated the topmost brand of the nursery roost to be our rendezvous point should nothing happen. Then, we took the plunge. It felt so weird, I was sure it was quite the same as actually having a living creature inside of me, but having the lifeless body of one within me felt just as weird…to give birth to a lifeless body…even when I was one with her, I couldn't imagine the pain and sorrow she was feeling.

I controlled my movements as best I could; I was finally able to leave her body and enter the womb. I stayed in the body of the pup for a moment, but I felt nothing, I was still me, and it was still nothing more than a dead body…I had failed, my thoughts and hopes of being reborn flitted away like my first Tiger Moth. I couldn't obtain my dream, no matter how hard I tried. As I left the body of both the pup and the female, I felt this weird tugging sensation…it didn't hurt, as I could no longer feel pain, but it felt very odd nonetheless. I flew effortlessly to the branch we had agreed to meet on and I was greeted by Marina and Griffin; neither of them had any luck with a live body either.

I will always be happy with the fact that I am still with the mate and son I love. I'm grateful that it didn't work for us all, I only now realized that we could have possibly been separated if we had been given new lives and now I thank Nocturna, wherever she is, that I still have them both. Still…I can't help but wonder…what was the weird sensation I felt as I left her body? Until a month or so after the pups are born, there won't be much for us to see. We'll check in on them before the first migration…possibly.


	2. Rebirth

'**Rebirth'**

**-Noxx-**

_Through the moonless night, I felt something following me. It's wing beats were soft, I was afraid it was a disgruntled owl…but I couldn't think of anything I did wrong, I was only hunting! Could it have possibly mistaken me for someone, or something, else? I turned my head quickly and sprayed out sound…my echoes had hit something large, but the only picture my mind's eye showed me was the dark glint of tarnished silver band._

I beat my little wings faster, but they did not carry me far…why did I have to be so small! Something hot blew at my backside, and I knew it was too late…whatever this thing was…it was going to have me in no time. I screamed out in pain as I felt it's claws sink into my shoulders and it started to quickly descend…and I was it's prey…It slammed me hard against the ground, I felt it hot breath against my face, I could smell the hunger and bloodlust the creature had…I was going to die and I didn't even know what had me.

As if to answer my curiosity, the moon appeared from it's vacant place in the sky and lit the night as if it were day. I opened my eyes and squeaked weakly in shock, my attacker was another bat! It's nose was long and pointed at the tip, it's eyes burned with a powerful mixture of vengeance, hatred, and hunger. He, this bat, was easily nearly three times my size, there was no way I could possibly escape his grasp.

His lips curled in a cruel smile as he began to lower his head towards mine, and I closed my eyes, waiting for those horribly sharp fangs to pierce my neck and end my life…when the pain of having my flesh ripped from my body did not come, I slowly opened my eyes. He was still staring at me, most likely waiting for me to gaze at his face.

He chuckled deeply as I began to struggle beneath him again, blasting more hot, putrid breath into my face. He lowered his mouth closer to my ears and began to speak. His voice was low and raspy, as if he hadn't had anything to drink in a very long time, but I could still hear those ghastly words clearly, 'I will eat your beating heart…'

"Momma!" the little bat squeaked softly in panic as he awoke from his nightmare.

He clung so tightly to his mother that she winced in pain, but she ignored the pain and gently stroked her whimpering pup, "It's alright, sweetie, I'm here…" she sighed, her tired face showed she was worried about her young son, "was it the Cannibal dream again?"

The child sniffed lightly and nodded, tears matting his fur, "yes…he spoke to me this time…he said he'd eat my beating heart.." he buried his face into his mother's soft fur and began sobbing loudly, "I could feel his hot breath in my face! He was really there, mom…he was really going to eat me…"

His mother, Serena, sighed heavily; ever since he was born, he was plagued by nightmares, 'visions' as he called them, about things he was to young to even know about. She made a soft cooing noise, trying to calm her troubled newborn, "He's not real, sweetie, those bats live very far away and they can't hurt you here…you're safe…" she nuzzled the back of his head lovingly, "I won't let anything bad happen to you…"

A soft yawn escaped her mouth, he had woken her up so many times crying about his dreams, that she was losing more and more sleep each night. She knew that, if this kept up, she wouldn't be strong enough to make the winter migration…she needed to be strong for her son incase he needed to cling to her…she knew his small wings would not be able to carry him all the way…even if he did resemble _him_.

"Sweetie, you should really get back to sleep, we've got a big night coming up, I'm going to teach you how to hunt." she mentioned her plans to teach him how to hunt like a 'grown-up bat' in hopes of taking his mind of his dreams so they could both get a decent amount of sleep for once, "won't that be fun?"

The little bat sniffled and nodded, "yes…it will be fun…but, momma, I don't think I'll be able to get back to sleep…I know I'll see him again." his spirits lifted with the thought of his first hunt, but he was too afraid of his dreams to even close his eyes.

She sighed and tilted her head slightly to look at the platform below their roost, the elders had left herbs near their roost for the two; it was quite a powerful sleep aid. Serena raised her wing and hooked a leaf on her thumb claw, then she bit off a small amount off the tip and began chewing, mulching up the leaf so it would be easy for him to swallow.

As it was becoming a nightly, sometimes twice a night, routine, he immediately opened his mouth and let her drizzle the leaves juice down his throat. He began to feel it's effects immediately and yawned loudly, "…thank you…momma…" his grip on her fur relaxed as he closed his eyes and sleep quickly claimed him.

She wrapped her wings tightly around him so he wouldn't fall as he slowly began to let go, "you're welcome, Noxx…" she yawned as she had swallowed some of the juice herself, "…sleep tight…" with that she fell asleep; mother and son roosting in a rare, peaceful sleep.


	3. Flying Nightmares

'**Flying Nightmares'**

**-Noxx-**

_**Two Months Later**_

_More darkness…is that all I'm destined to live in? I know I'm allowed to see the sun, I've flown in it's warmth many times, night just seems to be ideal for hunting. Though, I know…I know this isn't a natural darkness. I'm flying, but I don't feel myself going anywhere, my echoes seem to dissolve the moment I bark them out…it's like I've fallen into a place where nothing exists…no sound, no light…nothing._

…Maybe not…

My ears twitch as a soft wind brushes their tips. I could finally hear something…but not much…the wind carried a low hiss. It was just a hiss, I've heard snakes before…but never has the noise they made sent such a wave of terror over me. This noise…it sounded as if it were trying to form words. No matter how hard I strained my ears, I could not make them out…it was just nothing more than a hiss.

Without realizing it, I had stopped flying, I was merely floating there and it really didn't surprise me. In the darkness in front of me, something finally began to appear. Two long, thin lines slowly opened into hollow slits. I gasped when I saw that they were eyes…two hollow eye with no pupils…I know I've seen these before…but I don't know where. My heart felt like as if it were going to beat right out of my chest, how could something like this scare the fur off of me?

Like always, I quickly received my answer; below the eyes, a terrifying image, possibly more frightening then the eyes, came into view: a 'living' bat skeleton. The skeleton and the eye moved as if they were speaking; the skeleton held itself proudly, but the 'expression' it held showed that the eyes were clearly something to be feared and respected. The eyes narrowed and opened, most likely showing emphasis on what it was talking about.

I watched in fear, not daring to speak…I didn't want to draw any attention to myself. After a while of silent talking, the skeleton nodded, only to turn to me and smile wickedly before it dissolved into the darkness. My heart beat even faster, they knew I was here…I began to wonder if it was me they were talking about. Soon after, the eyes turned their attention to me. They narrowed as if they were angry with me…but they disappeared as well, leaving me in total darkness…

"Noxx, look out!"

"Huh?!" the shout of another bat broke Noxx from his trace-like state; he blinked once to clear his hazy vision and gasped, he was flaying straight for the truck of a tree. Quickly, he angled his wings and banked sharply to the left, narrowly missing the tree. Suddenly feeling exhausted, he roosted on a nearby branch in the middle area of the tree he just missed.

"What's with you, Smallwing?!" spat Mist, a fellow newborn, as she roosted beside him, "It didn't even look like you were watching where you were going!"

He grunted when she called him 'Smallwing', everyone seemed to torment him about his small size. His mother, and even the elders, had said that it was a miracle that he was even alive and that his size should not be made fun of…yet all the newborns did it anyway. "I don't know…" he said through a sigh, "…I wasn't looking…I think I was dreaming."

"Dreaming?!" she huffed, "you keep us all awake in the day because of your dreaming, and now you're dreaming while flying?! You could really get hurt!" her last sentence had a genuine twinge of concern, which made him smile. Even though she was hard on him, and she picked on him like all the others, she was actually very nice when his health was concerned.

He sighed again, rustling his wings uncomfortably, "…I'm not sure I would call it 'dreaming', now that I think about it…I still say it's more like a vision. I don't know what it means yet, but it's a vision…and it's going to happen, I just know it."

Mist also rustled her wings and tilted her head to the side questioningly, "Really now?" her eyes glinted with curiosity as she reached out her wing to gently touch his face, "Why don't you tell me about it, then?"

"Well…" he shifted nervously on the bark, his claws making a soft scratching noise in the silent night air. He didn't want to tell her because he knew that, the minute he told her, her concern would fall away and she'd start making fun of him again. But, he had to tell someone, keeping this bottled up any longer would surely drive him mad. Even though he was sure he was going to regret it, he took a deep, shuddering breath and began to tell her everything he saw; the total darkness, the pair of hollow eyes, the living skeleton, and the conversation the two seemed to be having. When he finished, she did exactly what he had thought she would…she began laughing hysterically .

"So," she managed to speak through her loud laughter, "a pair of floating eyes and a bat skeleton were talking about some 'sinister plot'?" she took a breath, trying to calm herself down, "you're crazier than I thought, Smallwing!"

He groaned and looked away from her, "…I knew that's how you'd react…" he mumbled, "…I don't even know why I told you…and I never said they were talking about a 'sinister plot'…" after he had said it aloud, he realized how ridiculous it sounded…but she didn't have to act like that…

She smiled, wiping the tears from her laughing fit away with her claw and beat him softly on the back with her wing, "aw, c'mon, 'Hero', I was just having some fun. It was just a dream, that's all…" she paused, "…oh, 'vision', sorry. You have to admit, it really does sound silly."

'Hero', another nickname of his…he hated that one too. Since his fur grew in, everyone said he looked like an old hero who died a century ago, Shade Silverwing, the nickname 'Hero' had spawned from that. Personally, he didn't think so, he'd never seen the bat himself, but the elders who had been to the echo chamber had spread his image using echo pictures…when he had asked his mother who Shade was, she sang him the picture…he looked nothing like him…well, he did have his size, and their eyes had the same daring spark to them, but there was a noticeable difference in his fur.

There were dark splotches around his mouth, nose, ears, and joints; it looked like he had been bleeding from old wounds. He always said this difference made him look completely different, but others said otherwise. Those who were related to Shade's son, Griffin, had a special story and echo picture passed down through them…Shade Silverwing had bled from the very same places when he died. Maybe he did look like the legendary hero, but that didn't mean he was a hero himself.

Noxx felt heat prickle beneath his fur in embarrassment, "…yeah…I guess you're right…" he wished she would just leave, she may be his friend, but he never liked it when she poked fun at him and his visions. Just as he was about to ask her to leave him alone, his stomach growled loudly.

"Hero," she started, her smile no longer there, "you've been flying around all this time and you haven't even hunted?" her voice was soft and concerned, "You'll never make the migration if you don't eat…you don't eat, you won't get stronger…and, if you don't get stronger, you're mother will lose you for real this time!" she stretched her wings and prepared to take flight, "C'mon, Noxx, let's go get some bugs before the dawn chorus starts…race ya!" with that she unhooked her rear claws and let go of the branch, flying off quickly into the night.

He smiled, she could always cheer him up, even after it was her who upset him. "You're on!" he cried out after her as he also let go of the branch and flew behind her. He knew for a fact that his small wings wouldn't carry him ahead of her, but he had hoped his size would help him get into places she couldn't. He was so hungry that he'd eat anything that flew past his nose; he'd beat her in this eating race this time, his hunger would be his secret weapon.

Twenty minutes passed before the dawn chorus began to rise into the air, and he felt so full he that he could barely fly. He must've eaten over a thousand insects, maybe more, he would like to hear that she had eaten more…then he'd be impressed. One thing was left for him to do, make it back to Tree Haven before she did. He beat his wings faster in hopes that he'd make it to the large oak tree before Mist, but, as the tree came into sight, a black blur shot passed him.

"I'm going to beat you!" Mist called out to him with a proud smirk on her face.

He put more power into his arms, his shoulders already ached so badly, "No you're not!" he panted, "I've still got a chance!" He didn't have much of one though, the knothole entrance was coming up quickly and he was lagging too far behind. In front of him, she trimmed her wings, preparing for entrance, and he did the same. To his disappointment, she disappeared into the knothole just a second before he did.

"I beat you!" she squeaked, "good try though, Smallwing, you almost beat me this time."

He smiled, he liked it when she praised him, "yeah," he panted, "and that was the most I've eaten in a long time! I feel so good!"

She smiled back and spread her wings, "I'm glad, Noxx, all you needed was a little motivation, right?" she turned before he could say anything else, "I'm going to find mom, I could use a good grooming." she laughed, "Sleep well."

He waved his aching wing goodbye to her and turned to find his own mother. Before he even had a chance to lift from the wooded platform he stood on, his mother, accompanied by Aria, the colony's Chief Elder, landed beside him. He quickly clung to his mother, and nuzzled her lovingly, momentarily ignoring Aria, "Hi mom, how did your hunt go?"

She smiled lightly, "It went well, Noxx, I enjoyed watching you play." as she spoke, she began grooming his fur, taking out any bugs he may have collected in his tangles as he flew.

He smiled up at her, the warmth and scent of her fur was always a comfort no matter how he was feeling, he purred softly as she ran her claws through his fur. "Mom…" he hesitated, not wanting to ruin the pleasant moment they were both having, "…I had another vision…it was different this time…"

Serena's smile faded and her normal, tired, worried expression returned as she glanced at Aria. As the elder nodded, his mother looked back at him, obviously trying to keep a strong appearance for her son, "…that's…why we came down to meet you, sweetie…"

Aria unfurled her wings and turned away from then, "Noxx, Serena, follow me…there is something that we must discuss…something we can no longer ignore…"


	4. A Rogue Echo

'**A Rogue Echo'**

**-Noxx-**

Noxx felt his heart flutter in quick panic, an elder, especially not the chief elder, had never paid much attention to him and his mother. They had always said that he and his mother were weak and were not to be bothered with. His mind raced with possibilities; had he done something so horrible that the elders actually took notice? He couldn't begin to fathom what he may have done.

Not wanting to be a burden to her as she flew, he let go of his mother's fur and spread his wings, preparing to take off after Aria, but Serena held him back for a moment, "Noxx, wait, please." before he could completely turn to face her, she already had him wrapped in his wings in an embrace that said she loved him…but she was also frightened.

He could smell the fear and uncertainty rising from her body, and it made his heart pound even harder against his chest, "…Mom…what's going to happen?" he could feel himself begin to tremble, but he held himself well, he didn't want to worry his mother anymore than she already was.

Serena sighed and nuzzled the top of his head, "Aria…she just wants to talk to us…she'd concerned about your health. Now that the migration is coming up soon, she just wants to make sure you can make it."

He nodded, his heart still pounding, he couldn't help but think there was something else accompanying this 'talk' they were about to have. As she let go of him, he flashed her a confident smile and flexed his small wings, trying to appear muscular, "I'll be able to make it, mom, I just know it! I'm just as strong as Mist and the others, you'll see!"

His mother smiled wearily, "That's my little miracle."

He smiled at what she called him, 'her little miracle' was her nickname for him since his birth. He could remember her saying it over and over as she nursed him; an overwhelming sense of pride and love swelled within him as he thought back. His mother was really the only bat he had who truly cared for him; he knew he wouldn't trade the love of his mother for the love of his whole colony. All he ever really needed was her. Though, as the light from the rising sun filtered through Tree Haven's many knotholes, his smile faded. The light made his mother look so tired…so frail…and it was all because of him.

Aria must've noticed the same thing he did as she circled back to them, obviously tired of waiting, "Serena, this really only concerns the boy. There is no reason for you to come with us, I will personally report back to you with any information about your son's health." her old voice held genuine concern, something that really surprised Noxx, "Eat three of the leaves the Elder Council gave you and sleep on all fours." she shot Noxx an accusing glance out of the corner of her eye, "…have a restful sleep for once."

Serena must've been too tired to argue, because all she did was yawn and fly off, she didn't even say goodbye to Noxx. Her actions made his heart sink, but he was happy that his mother would actually sleep well through the morning. "sleep tight, mom…" he muttered under his breath as he watched his mother fly higher to their roost.

Aria beat him forcefully against his back with her wing to get his attention, "Come with me now, boy, we have much to talk about." she lifted and hovered for a moment to make sure he followed this time. "Quickly!"

He jumped a little when she raised her voice to him, he never liked being yelled at, "Yes, Ma'am…" he had to flap his tired wings several times before he managed to lift from his platform and he followed as close behind the elder as he possibly could without running into her. Terrified anticipation burned at the back of his skull, he didn't like the feeling and he wished Aria would tell him what exactly was going on.

He expected her to pull up and fly to the medical roost, that was where he always went as he clung to his mother when she needed more herbs. But, instead, she circled downward towards the gnarled roots of the tree. As they flew downward, his confusion and the burning feeling in his head increased to a dizzying level, he could see the tree spinning around him, even though he flew straight. He felt as if he were going to pass out in midair.

They had both reached the bottom and there seemed to be nowhere else left to go, nothing more than roots that lead to underground dead-ends. Curious, he landed quickly, and rather clumsily beside her. Because he was still dizzy, he stumbled forward and nearly fell into the soft, aged wood of Tree Haven, but Aria thrust out her wing and he caught himself on her leathery membranes. He merely grunted in thanks, finding it hard to form words in his current state.

"If you can't already tell," her voice echoed loudly in the quiet of the tree's base, "we aren't here to discuss your health…" she jerked her wing away from him once he found his footing, "Though, by the way you're acting, we actually will need to check on you…" there was that hint of concern again. How could she be so rude to him one minute and seem to care about him the next?

He shook his head, trying to clear the haze his worry and fear had caused, "…I'm fine now…not knowing what's going on has just given me a headache…that's all…" now that his vision had cleared, he looked around again and saw nothing more than dirt and roots, "…what are we doing down here anyway?" he could feel his legs and arms beginning to tremble with fatigue, "…I want to get back to my mother…" he was beginning to whimper, "…I'm tired and I don't feel good…"

"Stop your sniveling!" she snapped, "This is rather important!" her nostrils flared in both annoyance and purpose, she was sniffing the air for something and Noxx couldn't understand what.

He watched her intently, as she nosed through the dirt in front of a root, he couldn't help but notice a strong feeling of déjà vu. He felt as if he'd been here before, watching an elder unveil a secret very few had ever seen. His heart raced as her claws broke through the dirt blocking the entrance to the carefully concealed tunnel. Somehow, he had been there before…and he ached to see it again. Immediately after she pushed through the thick layer of dirt, he followed her without instruction to do so, not wanting the wonders within to escape and extinguish in the outside air.

As he pushed his way through, she quickly sealed the entrance, nearly catching his tail membrane in the thick dirt without even muttering an apology. She pushed ahead of him and continued crawling through the dirt and mud, Noxx quickly and quietly in tow. The feeling that he had been there before continued to grow as he pulled himself through the soft dirt; the deeper they went, the stranger he began to feel. As they came to another dead end, another thick wall dirt, he could heart his heartbeat pound in his ears; they had finally reached it, a place that felt so new to him…yet a place he felt he had been to so long ago.

Aria pushed through their last blockade, letting Noxx all the way through this time, and lead him to a single root that hung from the ceiling that served as a small roost for little more than two bats. The chamber they roosted in was completely dark, and he was curious as to exactly where they were; he took a deep breath and was about to bark out sound to attempt to understand his surroundings, but Aria's wing beat harshly against his mouth causing him to only whimper.

"Don't you dare!" she hissed at him, her voice barely above a whisper, "The smallest use of echoes that don't have a real purpose will taint and distort the stories floating around here!" her rough tone immediately lessened and turned gentle, almost nostalgic, "…it's been nearly one hundred years since a newborn has been allowed down here…"

He stared down, not wanting to make the slightest bit of eye contact with the oddly moody elder, "…the echo chamber…" he whispered, his voice barely audible, even in the silence of the cave.

"You know of this place?" she truly sounded amazed as no one, save for the few who had amazing stories to tell, knew of the chamber, "…Who exactly told you?"

He shrugged, though it wasn't a visible gesture in the darkness, "…no one told me, really…I just had this feeling…I've been here before…" that uncomfortable prickle beneath his fur had returned that minute he finished, he had never told anyone, not even his mother, that he had these kind of feelings…feelings that he knew many things about the old tree that maybe even the elders didn't know.

Her ears twitched, again searching the air or something that seemed important, "I see…there is something I'd like you to hear, Noxx, scoot closer to me and strain your ears…this is very faint…"

Noxx didn't still didn't understand, but he listened for fear of getting hit with her leathery wing again. His claws scratched lightly against the root the roosted on as he moved closer to her and strained his ears. The echo was indeed faint, but the picture it sang to him seemed far more familiar to him than he wanted it too…the banded cannibal.

He gasped and nearly let go of the root in surprise, "I've seen him!" he squeaked, "The was the cannibal that haunted my nightmares!" he was trembling now, the bat his mother had told him wasn't real had really existed.

"…that is what I thought when your mother first described it to me…I hadn't thought anything about it until now…" her voice was now more calm than it had ever been, she sounded almost grandmother-like, "You possess a very unique gift, Noxx, a gift that only one other had possessed before…you will have to figure out what these 'gift' really are on your own." her wings rustled as she spread them slightly to push him away, "Listen to the other echoes of our history, see what you can learn."

The way she spoke, he half expected her to leave him in the chamber alone, but she stayed by him as he swiveled his ears in many different directions, catching all sorts of echoes, it was hard to concentrate on just one:

"…banished to the night for all eternity…"

"…_cle…m…am…"_

"…I won't let this continue!"

"…_n..t…my…ult…"_

"…Nocturna's Promise fulfilled…or…"

"…_I…inn…nt"_

"…Lured by the false cries of our family…not real…tricked…"

"…_wro…y…ban…hed…"_

"Finally free…he sun returned to us…Vampyrum threat finally vanquished…"

"…_I…on't…w…nt…thi…"_

No matter where he turned his ears, no matter what he tried to listen to, something else pushed it's way forward, as if the echo was looking for attention. As he tried to lock onto it, it managed to escape his ears, as if leading him on a chase, like it was a game of some sort. Though, he managed to catch glimpses of the elusive story's echo picture: a great dark bat with strange markings on his body…he looked horribly ferocious and it frightened Noxx that such a story existed in the chamber…but, for some odd reason, he sensed something else in the bat…something he couldn't place…

Aria broke his concentration as she brushed him with her wing, "come, let us be off, we've also got an examination to perform…" she let go of the root and Noxx reluctantly followed. "Did you learn anything boy?"

Noxx yawned and nodded, he had only just realized how tired he felt, "yes, I did, actually…but, something bothers me though…"

"Oh?" She slowed her wing beats slightly so they flew side-by-side, "and what would that be, boy?"

He took a deep breath and sighed, "…I saw an enormous bat as I listened to other echoes…he had the strangest markings on his body…"

As she opened the entrance and let him through, she sighed as well, "…what you saw was The Marked One…The Demon…"

He nearly shoved his head into the soft mud of the tunnel as he tried to turn to face her, "…the…The Demon?"

She shook her head and pushed ahead of him, "it is a very dark part of our history, Noxx…let us not speak of it again…" they finally reached the exit of the root the crawled through and took flight in the cool morning air now blowing through the tree, "come…the medical roost awaits…"


	5. The Medical Roost

'**The Medical Roost'**

**-Noxx-**

His suddenly realized fatigue made the flight up to the medical roost seem far more painstaking that it had been any other time. He scolded himself silently for weighing his mother down all those times…it was difficult for his little body, it must've been so hard on her to carry him when she was constantly tired. He began to whimper as he began to miss sleeping against his mother's warm fur. How was it possibly that she could be so close, in the same tree, and yet feel so very far away?

Hearing his faint whimpering, Aria called back to him, "Speed up your ascent, boy, the faster you cooperate with the examination, the faster you can curl into your mother's fur again."

He was amazed at how quickly she seemed to read his mind, he supposed she had just picked up on his whimpering and made a guess…but, she was an elder, could she possibly possess some otherworldly power? He immediately shook the thought from his head, there was no possibly way a bat could have such strange powers. He knew, he hoped, the thought was just another product of his tired mind.

Finally, after what seemed like more than an hour to his weak body, they reached the entrance to the hollowed out branch that was the medical roost. As he landed, he nearly gagged, the scent of the roost was nearly overwhelming. It wasn't so much the scent of the many herbs the roost held, but the combination of the scent of sickness…and death, that lined it's walls. Even breathing through his mouth didn't help, he could taste the scent just as easily as he could smell it. Hoping he would get used to it over time, he began breathing through his nose again as he followed behind Aria.

He tried to keep his eyes focused on what was only ahead of him, but his curiosity forced himself to look in other directions. He saw many things he already wished he hadn't; sick newborns, several of which he had been friends with, and countless others who had been injured by either being careless during a flight or attacked by some other animal.

His eyes fell to what he thought was a pile of leaves, but the bats in the medical roost were more organized than to just pile things in a ragged heap, he knew that much. As he stared at it, he saw a small flower topping the pile of leaves and the faint scent coming from the pile of leave made his heart flutter in sad realization…the pile of leaves was a burial shroud. A bat had died recently and they had yet to send it off into Nocturna's nurturing wings. He had stopped following Aria without realizing it as he stared at the hidden body. Tears began to well up in his eyes, he didn't know who the bat was, but he already felt sorry for their uninformed loved ones.

Aria slowly crawled back to him and sighed, "…we knew she was going to go any day…this really is no surprise. She was very sick and not even our best herbs could save her…she'll be with Lady Nocturna soon enough." her voice, though it sounded lined with genuine sadness, carried a hint of what seemed like pride…as if she had won a bet about the date the bat before them was going to die.

He was about to ask who that bat was, but he received his answer before he was able to open his mouth. Two of the other Elders, he couldn't seem to remember their names, were leading a young female bat towards the pile. Her eyes were wide with fear and her fur was matted with tears, the elders must have already told her what happened.

Noxx stared at her, wondering how she was related to the fallen bat. She looked to be about two years old, the body beneath the pile could very well be her newborn, but the pile seemed to large for the small body of a child…then again, he could be just comparing his own size with the size of a regular sized newborn.

She looked so different from the other bats, her fur didn't look silver at all, it was white like a cloud. He wondered why she looked so different and was about to ask Aria if she knew. But, as he opened his mouth, anything he was about to ask was cut off by the white female's upset cries.

"Mother!" she yelled as she broke free from her Elder escorts, "Mother, no!" she nosed through the leaves, frantically trying to get through the leaves to the body of her parent. As she thrust the final leaves away from the body, Noxx realized the leaves were really fragrant herbs used to mask the scent of death. Everyone in the area wretched when the heavy scent reached their nose, except the white female, she continued to sob as she curled up as close to her mother's body as she possibly could.

It was then that Aria began to take charge, the false sadness falling away completely to be replaced by a sort of irritated anger, "Katarra, you foolish girl!" she growled as she crawled towards the white female, "Your mother has passed and I won't allow you to fill the tree with the scent of her death! We don't need this for the newborns we're holding here!"

Katarra raised her head, not bothering to leave her mother's side, "You can't hide this from the colony forever! She has grandchildren from my brother, they'll have to know sometime!" tears spilled from her eyes like a broken dam as she spoke, "…just leave me alone…I want to be with my mother…"

Aria flared her wings in a threatening manner and rose up on her rear claws, showing Katarra who was boss, "I won't have confused chaos flying through my colony! She's dead and her loved ones will learn that at The Burning, we've already sent for the torch carriers and we'll send her to Nocturna at nightfall."

When Aria mentioned The Burning, the ceremony where the Owls helped the Bats send the spirits of their loved ones to Nocturna through burning the body and setting the soul free, Katarra mimicked the elder's actions and flared her wings as well, "I will not let you burn my mother's body!" her voice was becoming nearly a shrill wail as she tried to speak through her crying, "…I want…I want to lay her to rest…like I've seen the humans do…"

Katarra's statement was quickly met with Aria's claw swiped harshly across her face, "The human's way is foolish! Our way is the only way to make sure they reach Nocturna! You would just be sentencing your mother's soul to eternal damnation!" she narrowed her eyes and jerked her head towards the two elders, "…Restrain her…"

As the two lesser elders pushed Katarra's wings against her body, pinning her too the ground. As she struggled against their combined force, she shouted, "That's not how they meet Nocturna and you know it! Everyone know the stories of Shade and his child! Not everyone is so ignorant to believe your lies!" her words were starting to become lost in her frantic sobs, "…they'll…they'll find out…they'll all find out soon enough…all of your rules and customs are not for the good of the colony!" her eyes narrowed as she tried to move her head to look Aria defiantly in the eye, "…even his banishment was wrong…"

Aria was holding three red berried carefully in her claws, but the need to be careful vanished as Katarra spoke her last sentence, she lunged for the struggling white bat, "…never say that again!" she hissed through clenched teeth, "He was a threat to the colony, and you know it!" with that, she forced what was left of the berries, she had crushed them slightly when she lunged, down Katarra's throat. Satisfied that she had swallowed the berries, Aria moved off of Katarra, "…I don't want to hear any such heresy from you again…"

Katarra had lessened her struggle and fought to keep her eyes open, the juice from the berries was incredibly potent. All she could do was whimper slightly and whisper, "…Aelfric…" before she fell into a disturbed sleep.

Aria sighed, seemingly upset from the struggle, "Take her back to her roost…she should sleep for the next two days…The Burning will go on as planned." she nodded in farewell as the two elders carried her limp body up to the higher branches where her roost was located.

As Aria turned back to Noxx, he flinched, expecting her to strike out at him too, but her anger was again replaced by a kind smile, "…poor girl…" she whispered, "…she was born with such a weak body…it won't be long before she follows her mother…" slowly, she shoved passed him, nudging him to follow, "now that that little distraction has passed, we can continue on with your examination…it won't be too much, I assure you…you and your mother both probably need sleep."

Noxx nodded meekly and followed behind the elder, staring questioningly at her. What had she done that made Katarra so angry with her? Was it possibly that her decisions were not in the colony's best interest? He had so many questions that needed to be asked…so many answers he needed to hear…and he felt there was no way he could get them.


	6. A Chance To Think

'**A Chance To Think'**

**-Katarra-**

_Sleep?_

_This isn't sleep…I wouldn't be thinking this clearly if I were asleep. I can't lift my eyelids, I can barely feel my heartbeat…there isn't a part of me that I can feel to move. I can live with that, I know I'll be able to move in a matter of hours…what I'm worried about…the one thing that scares me…_

_Is that my Elder, my leader…just tried to kill me._

_The berries she held as she approached me, I recognized them right away. I knew my life was about to end as she shoved those disgusting fruits down my throat…that's why I said his name…I was so afraid I wasn't going to see him again. Praise Nocturna that Aria chose to lunge and scare me before she tried to poison me, if she hadn't crushed those vile fruits and lost bits and pieces before she forced them on me, I would be traversing the underworld with my mother right now…_

_I'm not saying I don't want to see my mother again…even if I had died and was now flying beside her, I'd be happy…but I know that I have something else to live for, now more than ever. Both my mother and I knew something about our crooked elders that no one else could seem to see…and she paid the ultimate price._

_I know the reason they never tried to kill me until just now…and it's not because my mother was there to protect me, though she did a very good job. It's because of the way I was born._

_My mother, Corona, was a Silverwing, she was born and raised in this colony and she was a very kind hearted bat. She got along with everyone and never thought badly of others. Even when she knew Aria was hiding something, she never said anything wrong about her to anyone…there was never a better, more nurturing mother in the whole colony._

_My father, Helios, was actually a Brownwing warrior who made his way into the colony by mating with my mother. I remember him very little…he was taken from me by the owls when I was just a newborn…the very creatures who agreed to peace between our kinds killed my father. I do remember that he was a very caring and noble bat, respected by all in both the Silverwing colony and the Brownwing colony he left behind. He was a strict guardian of the colony and everyone was devastated by the news of his demise…all but Aria, of course…she seems to smile on death and sadness more than anything._

_Both of my parents were so strong….and yet my mother gave birth to something like me…_

_I am albino, there is no trace of silver or black in my fur…the moment I was born, even my mother knew something was wrong with me…so says the other mothers of the roost…they're all so unkind…they always have been. No one wants to get close to someone who is supposed to die._

_As an albino, I'm apparently supposed to have a weak heart by nature, the smallest thing to startle me can make it fail and my life would be over in one ceased heartbeat. According to the elder's in the medical roost, other things are supposed to be naturally wrong with me as well, horribly wrong. They hold meetings every month or so and each time they've 'predicted' the day I'm finally going to pass on…it has always made me feel so unwanted…like I meant nothing to them._

_Only my mother cared about me, she said I was as strong as my father, and I grew to believe that…my brother, Leo, however, believed the elders more than he did our mother. He never let me leave the roost, I always had to sneak away when he went to hunt, but I never had much time to hunt or play with the other newborns. He always flew back and forced me back into the roost the minute he caught wind of me flying around…I swear the other newborns and mothers had such big mouths._

_Mom always said that, if I really was to die early, that I should live my life the way I wanted and have fun when I still had the chance. I always had more fun when she gently scolded Leo about holding me back, he always backed off for a week or two and I could fly freely with the other newborns…not that any of the other newborns wanted to play with a sick weakling like me…_

_That's when I met him…._

_His father was a large bat, I think he was a Foxwing, so he was a fairly large bat himself, he wasn't hard to miss in a colony of small Silverwings. He was the only one who seemed to enjoy my presence, he'd always ask me to hunt with him, even though he really didn't enjoy the insects flying around Tree Haven. He'd joke and play with me like I was any other newborn and not some freak…I had a friend because of him…and I knew that, even if I died, I'd go knowing that someone other than my mother cared about me. That was enough to make my slowly sinking spirit soar far above the clouds._

_Then all of the happiness seemed to fall apart when he--…_

_Wait…_

_Why am I thinking about all of this now? Is it possible that what they say is true? Am I thinking about all of this…is my life playing itself out before me…because I really am going to die? My heartbeat is faint, but that's just an effect of the berries…I know that…my rear claws! I've been trying to move them for what seems like the past hour, I can finally feel them!_

_Mother, I'm going to do it, I'm going to use the strong heart my father gave me and the kindness you taught me…and I'm going to leave this colony and find him…no one, not even Leo, will miss me…_

_But first…maybe I should get some slee--…_


	7. Interrupted Dream

'**Interrupted Dream'**

**-Noxx-**

_On the labored wings of death, I see a mother Silverwing fly. Yet, in her eyes, I see purpose, the drive only a parent could have to see their child again. Her ears are pointed high in alert, she knows of the dangers even the dead can experience. I can feel the determination in her heart as if it were my own; I know that, if she is overcome by the underworld patrols, she'll have more than enough strength to escape them…thoughts of her child power her tortured flight, no predator will take her. _

_A song has been sung to her, I can hear it ringing in her ears as she follows the wispy, silver path it has marked for her. She---…_

"…_**Clear my name…"**_

_--will reach a destination where she will be free from the cold claws of the underworld forever. Above the smooth remnants of a long dead river, she flies, the path she has been shown remains true so far. She was told that anything and everything could change in---…_

"…_**it's wasn't my fault…"**_

_--the blink of an eye. Aware of this, she carries on; her silver-streaked fur reflecting no light from the artificial stars. The pain of a slowly administered poison that was given to her in life is starting to effect her dead, false body. Her wing strokes become painful and even more labored that before, it's almost as if---…_

"…_**I'm innocent…"**_

_---she's dieing again. Even more determined with this strange new development, she pushes her body even harder, the wish to see her daughter again, even I her daughter will never see her, is far greater than any memory of the pain that killed her. She closed her eyes, remembering her daughter's soft white fur. _

_I could feel her immediate panic as she opened her eyes, her path had--…_

"…_**wrongfully banished…"**_

_--changed! The dirty trickster, that false god of this barren land, had changed the landscape when she had her eyes closed for only a moment! That was it, her path was lost until she found another Pilgrim…no, she wouldn't give up that easily. She strained her ears as hard as she could, the sound of the tree, the sound of life, was all she had to rely on now. Her eyes and ears now switched roles; eyes now scanned the skies for Vampyrum patrols, while ears strained to hear her destination…._

_There, just on the horizon, it was there! It really existed! The sweet glow of the only escape, she had found it on her own. All she had to do was---…_

"…_**I don't want this…I never wanted this…"**_

_---fly into it. The nearer she got, the more she could feel it…heat, something she never thought she'd feel again…it felt so good, even I could feel it for her. The complete joy she was feeling was amazing, it made my own heart swell from her overflowing emotion._

_The great flaming trunk was right in front of her, all she needed was to fly through the knothole and perfect freedom would be hers. Unafraid, she began the ascent towards the door of hope only he great Winged Spirit could offer. With one final, deep breath, she trimmed her wings and entered the knothole. _

_The brilliant surge of energy told her that the rumors were true, this was it, her spirit was finally like that of Nocturna. Her Spirit was finally---…_

"_**CLEAR MY NAME!"**_

_**---**__free…_

That was the first peaceful dream Noxx had had in what felt like forever. Even the fact that a voice that clearly didn't belong in the dream, he knew he had heard it somewhere before, had screamed at him to 'clear their name', the dream calmed him to the point where he still didn't want to stir from his sleep.

Even though he had only glimpsed her momentarily under that pile of herbs, he knew the dream meant that the female that had died was now free from any pain whatsoever and was possibly back to watching over that white female…Katarra, if he remembered her name right. He'd certainly have to tell her when he woke up, he was sure the news would cheer her up.

After a few more minutes, his stomach began to rumble, morning must have already passed; it felt like it was just a little later than dusk. He started to get up, but movement and voices nearby cause him to immediately hold still. As he feigned sleep, he began to hear the familiar, hushed voices of the Elders.

Aria's cruel voice was easily recognizable, "…Muse, Lyre, has the Albino been taken care of?" she was speaking to the other two elders, the one's whose names Noxx couldn't seem to remember. Though, he remembered them clearly now.

"Yes, Aria," replied Muse meekly, "She did not respond when Lyre and I bit her, it is certain that she is dead."

It took all Noxx had in him not to gasp, the elders were really trying to kill that female? It seems the questions he had about his elder were slowly being answered without him having to even ask the questions. His elders could not be trusted…he no longer felt safe in this tree…he was beginning to think he'd never really feel safe.

"What about this one?" Lyre was referring to Noxx. His heartbeat began to quicken, were they planning to kill him too? "you took him to the echo chamber…is he?"

"Yes he is…" Aria had changed to her caring tone again, "he was able to hear the voices, I believe _he_ really is a part of the boy."

A collective gasp came from both Muse and Lyre, but it was Lyre who spoke, "What of the broken echo? Did he hear it?" her voice carried a sinister tone, like she was looking for an excuse to dispose of him.

"…he heard it, Lyre, but he didn't seem to understand it…" why did Aria sound so kind now? "I don't think we will need to do anything about it. Just by the way he acted, I'm sure he won't ask questions."

Muse hissed, "I don't understand how his echo got in the chamber in the first place! We weren't in Tree Haven when he was cast out!"

"That is precisely why his echo is there, we weren't here and he obviously took that opportunity to defile our history with a story that should never be told." Noxx heard the creak of Aria's leathery wings as she thrust them out, silencing them both, "there will be no further discussion of this tonight, both of you, go and signal for the Torch Carriers. The Burning will take place at sunrise." Aria smirked as Muse and Lyre nodded and obediently spread their wings, taking to the air and ascending through the upper area of the large, hollow, oak tree.


	8. Condolences

'**Condolences'**

**-Noxx/Mist-**

Aria sniffed harshly as she smelled the sharp scent of smoke in the area, the owls had stoked one of their hidden Fire Keeps in preparation for The Burning ceremony. In a few hours, a procession of owls would be slowly flying towards the Nursery Roost with burning branches in their claws…it would be just like a century ago, only the intention of the owls weren't particularly harmful this time; the only thing that would be burned now is the body of a dead bat…maybe two, if Muse and Lyre had spoken the truth about Katarra.

Without giving Noxx a second thought, she spread her wings and took to the air. Her destination wasn't quite as high as her two underlings; she was heading for a ledge protruding from the outer wall in the center of Tree haven, a ledge commonly used for announcements.

She spread her wings to their full length and held them high, signaling all who saw her to silence themselves and those around them, "My fellow Silverwings," she began, a hint of convincing, yet false, sadness rang in her voice, "It is with great regret that I come to you this evening to inform you that our beloved Corona Silverwing has passed on…"

She paused for a moment to let her news sink in. Her lips parted in a small smile as she listened to the gasps and whimpers of the bats around her, she liked to hear their disappointment the most, "The Burning Ceremony will take place at dawn. I'm sure it would have been Corona's wish for you all to see her fly into Nocturna's nurturing wings." As she finished, she folded her wings around her and bowed politely to those who listened, and took to the air to join her fellow elders in signaling the Torch Carriers.

Many bats went about their normal business of grooming and hunting, others were genuinely shocked to hear about Corona. She had always been healthy, or at least she always seemed it. She had been taking more and more trips to the medical roost, but many always thought that she was just concerned about Katarra and wished to learn how to treat any possible problem she may have…to have her die so suddenly, it was horrible news indeed.

Cautiously, Noxx sniffed the air to look for the scent of Aria or the other elders. When he was certain that none of them were around, he rolled over onto his belly, he must've moved around quite a bit last night, he remembered going to sleep on his stomach. He had two places he needed to visit; his mother's roost and the roost of that white female. Right now, his mother was his main concern. Aria had given them herbs to sleep, he was sure they were safe. Both he and his mother ate them nearly every night and they were still alive…but they normally only had one between the two of them…what would three do to her?

He hurriedly flew off to his roost, hoping to see his mother's smiling face as he approached. For once, his hopes weren't dashed immediately, his mother was still lying down, but he was sure he had caught his scent as he flew, because she had turned her head just slightly and was smiling kindly at him, "Noxx…sweetie, how are you feeling?"

His heart fluttered as she spoke, even though it had only been a night, he felt like he hadn't been around her in a lifetime. He suppressed a small giggle of happiness as he pressed himself into his mother's soft fur in a loving nuzzle, "I feel just fine mom, I slept so well!" his smile faded slightly as he remembered how tired she looked the night before, "How're you, mom? Are you feeling any better now?"

She smiled and slowly ran her claws through the fur on the back of his neck, "…I'm still a little tired, honey, but the herbs haven't really worn off yet. Aria's announcement woke me…" she yawned slightly, "…a few more hours and I'll be okay…then we can see poor Corona off together…"

He nodded, he didn't want to tell her about what he had heard and what was beginning to think the elders were doing. She was still tired and seemed to still have a lot on her mind, he wasn't going to worry his mother any more than she already was if he could help it. "I'm going to hunt for a little bit, okay mom?" he wasn't lying, he'd go out and hunt later…he needed to see Katarra first.

Serena yawned much louder this time and she was having trouble keeping her eyes more than half open, "okay Noxx, please be careful…and stay away from the owls, they may not be a war with us anymore, but you can never trust a bird carrying fire."

He smiled at her concern, the more she warned him about things, the more he felt the strong sense of love for her, "I'll be careful, mom." he nuzzled her again, "Sleep well, okay?" Her soft breathing told him she was going to do just that.

He turned his back to his sleeping mother and spread his wings, only to realize he didn't know where Katarra and her mother roosted. He paused and sniffed the air, trying to find her scent in the mixed air of all the other scents; not only was her scent jumbled up somewhere in this mess of smells, her scent had been masked by the air of the medical roost, he wasn't sure he'd ever find Katarra this way. Just as he was about to fly downwards to the exit knothole he was most familiar with, he heard a familiar voice.

"…Smallwing…"

He looked down and saw Mist making her way up to him. His ears lowered as he watched her, something seemed different, she wasn't the cheerful little bat she always was. Her face was soaked with tears and that concerned Noxx…he had never seen his friend cry.

When she landed beside him, he looked at her and tilted his head, "…I guess you heard what Aria said…" immediately after 'said' left his mouth, he wished he hadn't said a thing.

Mist's eyes filled with tears again and she fell into him, sobbing loudly, "Oh Noxx…she was my grandmother…I didn't know her very well…we only hunted together a few times, she was always so nice to me. She always let me have the best bugs when we flew together." she pressed her face into his chest as she sobbed, anything else she may have wanted to say was lost to her tears.

Her whole body was shaking and he didn't know who to console her…what were you supposed to say when you're friend lost a family member? Slowly, he wrapped one wing around her, trying to calm her shaking, "…it's alright, Mist…Corona is fine now…" he scratched the back of her head with his left claws, it was all he could think to do, "…in fact, I think she's with us right now…her spirit, I mean…"

She sniffed, he felt her breath pulling his fur, "…How can you say that, Noxx? The Burning hasn't happened yet…you can't tell me she's with us when they haven't sent her to Nocturna yet!" she looked up at him with anger and disbelief in her eyes, "…don't say things just because you think that would make me feel better!" she was angry with him, but she still clung to him. He was all she could turn to now, her mother never seemed to listen.

He sighed, "…I just…" he wasn't going to say he had a vision, she never seemed to like it when he talked about his visions…but he had to tell her somehow, he needed her to know what he saw. He took a breath as he remembered how Corona looked and sang out sound to Mist's ears. He tried to show her bits of what he saw…he didn't understand why he tried though, he was good at listening, but he was always so clumsy at using his own sound.

Mist gasped as the image of her Grandmother flew through her mind's eye. It was fuzzy, but it was so easy for her tell that it was Corona. Tears formed in her eyes as she watched her grandmother fly over fuzzy-looking, dried up riverbeds and through a flaming tree. Noxx couldn't transfer the feelings he knew Corona felt, but he could tell Mist understood what he was trying to tell her.

She stared at him in disbelief as he finished, "How did you?…" newborns couldn't normally sing echo pictures to others, even most adults had trouble showing echo pictures to others. Mothers could show sound maps to their newborns, but they could seldom do little more than that. She didn't want to ask anymore, she just smiled and pressed her face back into his warm fur.

He could hear her mutter a muffled 'thank you' against his fur, and that made him smile. He was glad he could help her, he was glad he could repay her for all the times she made him feel better. Now that he knew that she was related to Corona, that meant she was also related to the white female. He'd ask Mist to take him up to their roost later, but for now, he wanted to help her get her mind off of things, "…Mist…would you like to go hunt?"

She stepped away from him and nodded, "yeah, Noxx, I'd like that…" before Noxx had the change to spread his wings and jump into the air, she stepped forward and tugged gently on his wing, "…Noxx?…"

He lowered his wings and turned to face her, "what?"

She stepped even closer to him and pressed her nose to his in an awkward sort of kiss, "…thank you so much…" she giggled softly as she noticed a blush darken his fur and winked at him, the Mist he knew had finally returned, "C'mon Hero, let's go hunt!" she jumped from the ledge and dove for the nearest knothole to wait for him outside of the tree.


	9. A Pleasant Distraction

**'A Pleasant Distraction'**

**-Noxx/Mist-**

For a moment, Noxx stood on his roost in dazed disbelief, did Mist really just do that? His mother's muffled laugh told him that she had awoken long enough to see it happen; it wasn't just an illusion his mind came up with, it wasn't some hidden desire his subconscious decided to show his mind's eye, it really happened. His only friend just showed him something beyond friendship. But, he wandered, could he trust it to be real? If he decided to bring it up, would she just laugh at him and claim that she was vulnerable at the time, that she was his friend and would be nothing more? Even with all his visions and dreams, he had never been more confused in his short life than right now. Strange emotions swarmed inside him like a beehive. They started in his stomach and worked their way up to the back of his skull. It was a rather uncomfortable burning sensation…but this time, he liked it.

Still confused by the odd feeling, he shook his head, waving off the sensation until it was nothing more than a slight tingle. He spread his wings and jumped from his roost, lazily gliding down to the knothole Mist went through. As he exited the knothole, Mist immediately tackled him in mid-air, laughing as she did. She had caught him off guard for a moment, but he managed to break free and tackle her back.

For a few moments, they both tumbled and tackled each other through the air, laughing hysterically at the random game they began to play. It would have gone on much longer, anyone could see the two were having quite a bit of fun; but Noxx's stomach roared loudly, he had forgotten it had been some time since he last ate. Instinct, and his stomach, told him to go hunt while the night was young, but the little newborn couldn't leave the fun he was having. He beat his wings harder to rise and lunge for her again, but she swiftly dodged him and shook her head.

As if to answer the puzzled look he was giving her, Mist flew closer to him and said, "I just heard your stomach growl over all of that, Smallwing. You haven't been eating again!"

He opened his mouth to protest that he couldn't eat while sleeping, but she interrupted him, "I swear, you 'd starve if I wasn't around to remind you!" she banked to the left and yelled "C'mon, Hero!" again, she laughed loudly as she flew. Her echoes of laughter painted the image of two playful newborns all over the forest.

Noxx smiled and followed after her quickly, he didn't seem to mind that she was calling him every nickname he didn't like, he was just glad to provide some distraction for from what was going on around her for a while. He finally felt useful to her as a friend.

The promise of fires in the northern forests had every moth in an excited frenzy. The gathered near trees where the light seemed promising; even the moths were unaware of the locations of the owl's hidden fire keeps, they merely flew clumsily in search of the light and warmth of the flames that no one could see, which made this night an exceptional hunting experience. Hungrily, Noxx separated from Mist and snapped up several small moths; the powdery scales on their wings dusted his snout, giving him an odd appearance which only made Mist laugh more each time she saw him.

Through the sound of many small moth wings beating quickly, the deep hum of a Tiger Moth reached his ears. His heart quickened; no newborn had yet to catch one of these flying delicacies. If he could be the first to snatch one from the air, and Mist saw him, he might have a new nickname that he actually liked. He decided 'Hunter' would suit him well.

His ears swiveled to pinpoint the direction of the deep humming but he didn't use his echoes, he knew from stories and another odd sense of déjà vu, that echoes wouldn't help him here. All he needed was the light of the moon and his eyes. There it was, to his left, the moth was slightly larger than the others around it. It looked so juicy that his mouth had already begun to water. He beat his wings as hard as he could and locked onto the moth with his eyes. As she shot through the cloud of smaller moths, he sniffed and sneezed as their wings beat powder into his nose and mouth. It stung his eyes as well, but he refused to blink it away, he was going to catch this moth no matter what.

He felt like he was flying as fast as he ever had, whether it was hunger or pride driving him, he did not know, nor did he care. All he knew was that he seemed to know the moth's flight pattern before even encountering one. As it closed it's wings and dipped, he closed his wings and dipped. As it climbed higher, he climbed with it. Finally, with one last stroke of his wings, he overpowered the crafty moth and clamped it in his jaws.

For a moment, he looked around for Mist, hoping to show her his catch before he devoured it. Though, after a while, the moth's frantic beating of wings against the sides of his face in a sad attempt to escape began to give him a headache. He crunched down on the insect's body just enough to end it's life; even though she was no where to be seen, he still wanted to show Mist.

He almost couldn't wait, when he bit down on the moth, just a little juice drizzled out of it and into his mouth. It really was a juicy as it looked! He nearly began chewing on it before he had the change to roost and savor it, but Mist called out to him, obviously impressed.

"I saw the whole thing, Noxx!" she flew past him and landed on a nearby branch, "That was amazing! It's like you knew every move it was going to make! How did you do that?!"

He quickly roosted beside her, "Mnvi mvust…" he took the moth out of his mouth and held it between his wings, "I just did, I don't know how I did it…I just…did…" he couldn't think of any other way to explain it, there really was no other way to explain it.

She smiled, "I've never seen anyone hunt like that! Just wait until we get back to Tree Haven! I'll--…" she paused as she remembered everything that awaited her back at their summer roost; a funeral, a neglectful mother, and hundreds of other bats who were going to say "I'm sorry" and never really mean it.

Noxx didn't like how she quieted down so quickly, the Mist he didn't know had shown up again and he didn't like it. Slowly, he looked from his saddened friend to the moth in his claws and he remembered what she had told him about Corona, _'…she always let me have the best bugs…'_

He sighed softly as he nudged Mist slightly, "…Mist…here…" he awkwardly shifted the moth to just one wing and held it out to her, "…I want you to have it…"

As she looked over at him, tears shined in her eyes, "…Noxx…it…it was your catch…you should enjoy it. Not every newborn can get those…especially when you're as small as you are…"

He was going to let her have that insult, she seemed too upset to be snapped at about something that was probably just a joke. He continued to hold the moth out to her, "…please, I really want you to have it….I think I ate too much already…"

She was crying now, tears began to soak her fur as she inched close to him and took the moth in her teeth. As she chewed what had to be the most delicious moth in the northern forests, she began to sob, "…I miss her so much already, Noxx…she was better to me than my own mother…what am I going to do now?…"

He knew immediately that it was the worst time to ask this, but he though he might be able to come up with something that would help her in the process, "…Mist…I know this is a bad time…but maybe it will help…" he smiled softly as she looked at him, "…I need you to take me to your grandmother's roost…Katarra, your aunt, is still alive…please, we need to go see her…"

Mist nodded, she trusted Noxx's decision, "…alright…follow me…" with that, she let go of the branch and began to fly back to Tree Haven.

With full bellies and heavy hearts, the two newborns flew silently back to their home in silence. Hoping to get answers and comfort from someone the Elder's claimed to be dead. Noxx hoped, with every ounce of hope he possibly had, that he was right; that Katarra was still alive and well in her roost.

As the two newborns flew towards Tree Haven, Noxx did his best to keep his eyes from the top of the great oak. He knew Aria, Lyre, and Muse were up there, and he had no intention of paying attention to them. Mostly because he hated all three of them more than any bat should hate another because of what they did…but he also didn't want to look at them because he knew Mist would look too, and he didn't want to remind her of things anymore than he already had.

Despite all his efforts, his eyes wandered up to the topmost branches as they neared the tree. He scowled as he looked at them; Muse and Lyre were roosting upright on opposite sides of Aria, using all the strength they had into their old claws to stand up straight on the slightly lower branches the chose. They both had smug, yet senseless looks on their faces, blindly doing whatever it was their High Elder demanded of them.

Aria roosted between them on the highest branch, standing as upright as her lackeys, but she carried a sense of pride about her…like this was her moment to shine. The elder bat had set the scene and she performed well, now it was time for her final act. Her leathery wings creaked as she slowly spread them to their full length, her fangs showed in a wicked smile as she saw Lyre and Muse mimic her actions.

With their wings spread, it showed they weren't very far apart at all, their wingtips brushed against each other slightly. Slowly, Aria began to flap her wings; as she brought her wings forward, Muse ad Lyre opened theirs. As she opened hers, they brought theirs forward. Together, their wings opened and closed in a slow, eerie rhythmic pattern. It was almost hypnotic to look at.

As Noxx observed them, without drawing Mist's attention, he realized what they were doing. They were not planning to fly, they wouldn't have hooked so tightly to the branch if they planned to fly…no, this was a signal. This was only a means of signaling the Torch Carriers.

…the owls would be there soon…


	10. Passing the Torch

**:Author's Note: To those who have been reading and enjoying my story here, I apologize greatly for taking so long…I had a horrible case of Writer's Block…for…quite some time. This sorry little bit I'm posting was supposed to be a part of a much longer Chapter…but, like I said, major writer's block. I'm sorry for the short length of this little chapter.**

**Oh, and, one last thing. If you weren't notified about the change, I added just a little bit to the ending of Chapter 9 that will make the beginning of this Chapter make sense…that said, please, enjoy what little I have here.**

_'**Passing the Torch'**_

_--Bacchus, Dionysus, and Liber—_

A mournful hoot echoed throughout the forest as Dionysus saw the signal given by the trio of elders from his place in the sky. The old owl had been given the position as leader of ceremonies several years ago. In fact, if he could remember correctly, he was given it right around the time Aria was inducted as the Silverwing colony's High Elder.

It wasn't the most dignified of positions; many owls thought burning the dead of other species was unheard of and appalling. But, Aria had convinced him otherwise through pointing out that he wouldn't be suited for any other job. He was short for his species and a little on the heavy side. When he was younger and asked to be a soldier of the forests, he was laughed at and told that his size and awkward way of flying made him more suited to be a falling rock…now with his feathers graying with age; he looked more like a fuzzy rock now more than ever.

He spiraled down into the deep part of the forest and inspected one of the fire keeps. There he found his two sons, Bacchus and Liber, gently fanning the flames with their wings. Bacchus, the older of the two, stopped fanning and turned to his father, "Father," his voice was strong and lively, "did you see the signal? Is it time for The Burning?"

Dionysus nodded, his large eyes admiring his strongest son, "Yes, my son, it is time for us to begin the flight to Tree Haven…" his crooked beak cracked to form an odd smile, "Grab a branch, Bacchus, tonight you will be the one leading the procession. Liber and I will follow behind with the herbs."

Bacchus hooted softly in excitement, "Do you mean it? I get to lead tonight?" the young owl admired his father's job; it was something that always appealed to him. He wasn't morbid in his interest, he just enjoyed the warmth of the flames and he ached to feel its power in his talons. He also enjoyed helping the creatures of the forest carry out their traditions, whether they were wrong or not.

The old bird nodded, "Yes. I'm getting on in age and I may not be able to carry out my duties as well as I used too much longer. As my eldest son, you now get to carry the torch this night and every time afterwards."



Bacchus's eyes sparkled with pride, "I'm honored, father, thank you." He stood awkwardly on one foot as he moved the dried leaves on the outside of the fire a little closer to feed the starving embers. If he was to do a good job on his first ceremony, he would need a well fed fire.

Liber didn't seem to mind that his elder brother got chosen for the greatest honor his family would ever hold, he would do his best to help his father and his brother…he looked exactly like his father, so he knew it would be the only job he would be suited for…he knew Bacchus could easily become a soldier when it was needed…but he would always remain nothing more the overshadowed torch carrier.

Dionysus spread his wings, "Liber, let us leave Bacchus to the fire, I think he can handle himself…we need to get the herbs ready, it isn't a ceremony without them…" With that, both Dionysus and Liber took to the skies, "Bacchus," Dionysus called back, "it will be your duty to decide when we head out. Raise a call when you're ready for us."

Bacchus nodded, acknowledging his father's words, and turned his attention back to the fire. In those flames, the young owl saw promise and the bright dreams he always had of flying with fire within his talons…


	11. A Rash Decision

'_**A Rash Decision'**_

_--Various Characters--_

Silently, Noxx thanked Nocturna that Mist didn't see anything Aria and the other two elders were doing, his friend was already so devastated, and he didn't want anything else upsetting her now. He followed Mist and kept up with her rather well, however, he couldn't help but admire the way her fur reflected the moonlight.

The admiration was preplaced with fear when she disappeared into the nursery roost…what if Muse and Lyre were right? What if Katarra really had died? What if he was asking Mist to take him to a roost where she was going to find another dead body? The certainty he had felt about Katarra being alive faded more with each beat of his wings…but would the dead mother Silverwing had worked so hard to get to the Tree if her daughter was down there too? The thought of his dream calmed him a little…but he was still afraid of hurting Mist even more.

He opened his mouth to possibly try and stop her, but she was already flying upwards and she was already quite a way ahead of him…he cursed his small wings for not being able to carry him faster. As he flew upwards after her, the sharp smell of medicinal herbs filled his nose; they had already passed the medical roost, there really wasn't any turning back now.

As he turned his attention back to Mist, he realized he was getting closer to her…she was slowing down. His heartbeat quickened, had they really reached her late grandmother's roost already? She let him pass her, this was the moment of truth…either he would be able to comfort his friend and get some answers…or ruin Mist's life by showing her that the last bat in her family that may have cared for her was gone forever…

He landed gently, almost timidly, on the roost; at first glance, everything seemed fine…he didn't see the white female; he assumed she had recovered from whatever it was Aria gave her and went off to hunt. With a quick flick of his wing, he signaled Mist that it was okay to come up…and he immediately regretted it…

Mist raised her wings up to cover her mouth and stifle a scream; Noxx didn't see the pile of leaves towards the back of the roost…but Mist picked up on it the minute she landed…she saw the traditional burial shroud… the little white claw still sticking out of it…

She collapsed on the ledge and sobbed loudly, "Liar! You told me she was still alive! I'll bet the echo picture you sang to me was a lie too!" she looked up at him, tears already soaked her fur, anger and hatred burned in her eyes, "I hate you, Noxx! I hate you!" anything else she tried to say was lost in her sobs.

Tears filled Noxx's eyes, he didn't want this to happen…this wasn't supposed to happen, she had to have been alive…she just had to…he sniffed, trying to hold back his own tears, but an odd scent caressed his nose. It wasn't nauseating, it was a little nasty, but it wasn't something he couldn't handle. He looked to the pile of leaves, the source of the scent, it was different than the medical roost…it didn't smell of 

death…as he approached the pile, a small dark puddle spilling out from the bottom told him what he smelled was blood.

Fresh blood…

From the stories spread around, his visions, and his short time in the echo chamber, he knew that dead bats don't bleed. He pushed his nose into the leaves and moved them away, he did not smell the stench of a slowly rotting bat corpse, he smelled blood and the familiar scent of Tree Haven on her and that was all.

His heart leapt, could she still be alive after all? He needed to be sure before he tried to get Mist to cheer up again…For a moment, he stared at her, she was so different from the other bats in the colony. Even after what she had been through, her white fur was so soft and clean. The fur covering her head as interesting as her color; it was long, but it wasn't shaggy, it looked like she took great pride in her appearance…it was a shame to think such a pretty bat was dead…

Cautiously, he poked her with his thumb claw. He was almost afraid that, dead or not, she'd lash out at him and yell at him for coming up to her roost; but she didn't. She did, however, stir slightly as if she were dreaming. Katarra was alive!

"Mist!" he cried out, "Mist, come here, please! She's still alive! Your aunt is still alive!"

Mist was still crying, but she slowly stumbled over to them both. Her eyes widened when she saw Katarra's chest rising and falling with her gentle breathing. Without thinking, Mist nuzzled into the white female, who responded with a wince and a, "wha--?"

As Katarra's eyes fluttered open, she smiled weakly, "Mist, it's good to see you again…" tears began to run through her fur as what had happened crashed against her conscious mind like a strong wind, "…mother would have been happy to see you again…"

Mist stayed curled into Katarra's side, she enjoyed being close to someone who cared about her, "That's what we came here for, Auntie Katarra…we, Noxx and I, know something about grandma…we just thought you…you were…" she broke into gentle sobs again, thinking that her aunt could have been dead.

Katarra cooed softly to her as she tried to roll over onto her stomach, "Shh…shh… it's okay…you won't be able to get rid of me that easily." She smiled and touched her wing to Mist's face. Any weakness she may have had due to the herbs or her wound seemed to have faded for the sake of calming her young niece, "Now, what was it that you and your friend came to tell me?"

Mist smiled, "Noxx had a vision, he does that a lot, but I think this one was real!" Noxx wasn't sure if he should take offense to that, but again, he let her have that one, "It was about grandma! She's okay now! She made it to the Tree and she's probably here right now, watching over us!" tears still flowed from her eyes as she spoke, the thought that her grandma was still with her helped, but it still hurt.



Katarra glanced curiously at Noxx, "Is that true, Noxx? Did Nocturna show you that my mother made it to the right spirit world?"

Noxx nodded, "Yes…I didn't see her very well in the medical roost, but I felt what she felt; the determination to see you again…" he took a deep breath, "I think I can try to show you, but it won't be very good…I can't use sound like I should…"

Katarra laughed, "You remind me of someone I…used to know…" she sort of drifted into thought, "he was always so clumsy with his sound…but he was such a strong, caring bat…" she shook her head, bringing herself back to the present. "I'm sorry; I lost myself for a moment…please, show me what you can…"

Noxx barked out the picture of Corona flying through the underworld she had been thrust into. This time, everything was a little sharper, like he had practiced a few times earlier. He was actually able to show her, and eavesdropping Mist, everything he had seen in his vision. When he finished, he felt dizzy and out of breath, but very proud of himself nonetheless.

"That was better this time, Hero!" Mist exclaimed, "How did you learn to do that so quickly?" she didn't even give him a chance to answer as she looked to Katarra, "that means that they don't have to…" she swallowed against the lump of coming sobs, "…to burn grandma's body..."

"You might still have the chance to bury her like you wanted." Noxx interrupted, letting on that he had seen the spat her and Aria had earlier in the medical roost.

Katarra gasped, "Oh Nocturna, the Burning!" she struggled to get up, obviously still slightly feeling the effects of the herbs given to her, "We have to get to the medical roost now! Her body still might be there…" she didn't seem happy about going to see her mother's dead body again, but she wanted to do what she had seen the humans do many times before as it seemed more fitting…and far less destructive.

Both Noxx and Mist moved to her side, "do you think you can fly?" Mist asked, concerned, "we can go down there for you…" she didn't seem too thrilled about going either.

Katarra shook her head, "I can't let you go down there by yourselves, I won't do that to you both…" she stretched her wings, the wound on her side still bleeding slightly, "I can make it, I'll be fine…"With that, she glided quickly down to the branch harboring the medical roost with Mist and Noxx close by her.

In the hollow branch of the medical roost, a wide path between the beds of leaves and the neat piles of herbs had been cleared…the pile covering Corona was no longer there, "No! They've already taken her down!" she sighed, trying to calm herself, but she had already started shaking, "m-maybe we can get down there and take her back before--…"

The mournful hoot of an owl cut her off; Bacchus, Dionysus, and Liber were already above the lake that Tree Haven rested near. Bacchus carried the large, lit branch proudly within his talons. To his left, Dionysus flew clumsily with a large amount of herbs in his talons. To Bacchus's right, his brother Liber flew just as clumsily as his father and he held just as many herbs in his claws. Bacchus hooted again, this 

time, his father and brother echoed him. This signal caused Tree Haven to erupt as bats flew out of every hole in the old tree; many seemed to be there for lack of anything better to do so close to dawn, but more were there to pay their respects to their fallen friend.

As nearly every bat roosted on the outside of their summer home, Aria broke away from the colony and greeted Bacchus and the others in mid-air, "Thank you for coming this night, it means a lot to the colony that you help us send our loved one off…" her expression and tone said she was being sincere, but anyone who knew her well enough, which is why she did not have Muse or Lyre with her, would know better.

Bacchus hovered before her, "It is my pleasure, High Elder, I will do my best to see that your traditions are carried on correctly…" he scanned the edge of the lake, "where is it that the ceremony is to take place?"

Aria jerked her chin towards a large rock that rested in front of a small pit, "the poor girl is waiting to be sent into the nurturing wings of Nocturna over there…" she turned and started to descend towards the rock, "Follow me."

Bacchus hooted and nodded towards the rock, Dionysus and Liber took the hint and broke away from their leader. Dionysus banked to the left, Liber banked to the right and together, they flew in a spiral pattern, each occasionally crossing over the other. Despite the clumsy flying of both owls, it was a very impressive display of their mastery of the skies.

Several newborns, unaware of the actual purpose of the ceremony, chattered excitedly to their nearby friends. Still not completely secure with their own flying skills, they were impressed by the owls' flying patterns. These silent compliments made Dionysus ruffle his feathers in pride; he had rarely ever been complimented, even by newborn bats…tonight felt like a good night, even with the conditions of a funeral.

Swooping downward towards the pit, Dionysus and his youngest son crossed paths as they flew in front of the rock Aria stood on, dropping the herbs they had clenched in their talons over the dead bat's body. Once their talons were empty, they crossed in the skies one more time before landing behind the elder bat in nearly the same position they were in as they flew behind Bacchus; several inches behind her, Dionysus to her left, and Liber to her right. Bacchus hovered in the air several feet above the large rock and the creatures standing on it, it wasn't his time to perform his duty just yet.

Through a quick scan of the large number of bats roosting outside of Tree Haven, Aria could tell that a few members of her colony were missing. She spotted Serena, the young mother still didn't seem quite awake, but her eyes darted about as she looked for her son. A smile worked its way onto the High Elder's face; she found Serena to be a loving mother and she admired her for it. Though, her smile faded quickly as she spotted Mist's mother; the girl didn't seem to care at all where her daughter was…she just groomed herself in an attempt to make herself presentable for her mate's mother's funeral…



Aria shook her head, chasing all thoughts about the other bats in her colony away; she felt that it wasn't her duty to worry about the personal lives of every bat in Tree Haven. All she needed to care about was what was for the good of the entire colony…everything she did was for the good of the colony…

Her joints creaked softly as she raised her wings to silence the low chattering of her colony. When silence reached her ears, she began to speak in a loud tone, "My colony, we have all gathered here this night because we have suffered a great loss…" her voice quivered in false sorrow, "Corona was a beloved mother, grandmother, and friend to us all…"

Aria's voice traveled to the ears of not only every bat gathered outside, but also to the three bats who remained in Tree Haven. Katarra gasped, "She's already started!" tears were once again beginning to well up in her eyes, "…I'll…I'll never get to lay her to rest…My mother is going to get burned all because of some stupid tradition that should have never started!" for a moment, it looked as if she was just going to break down right there, but she remained strong not only for herself, but for the two young bats accompanying her.

She stood, hunched over slightly in the narrow roost; determination shining in her misty eyes, "I'm going to stop this…" her voice squeaked slightly as she spoke, "I will rip the fire from that owls talons if I have to!"

She quickly began to claw her way to the knothole the medical bats used for quick entrance in an emergency on the far side of the roost. The way she moved showed the two young bats following her that she no longer cared about what happened to her or her relationship with the colony, all she wanted right now was to ensure that her mother's body wasn't destroyed.

Her actions concerned Noxx and Mist, but before either of them could open their mouths to protest, Katarra opened her wings to take flight and her body protested for all of them. She opened her wings as wide as she possibly could, hoping to glide down there so she wouldn't stress her wounded body, but merely spreading her wings stressed it too much.

The bite wound Muse and Lyre had given her opened up as if it were completely new, blood soaked her white fur and dripped onto the wood she stood on. She hissed in pain as the lightly smoke filled air hit her wound and she began crying again…there was no way she'd be able to do anything in this condition…

"No!" she hissed through clenched teeth, "…I'll…I'll never get to them now…" tears now flowed freely from her eyes once again. Through her sobbing, she managed to choke out, "…I'm sorry mother…I'm so sorry…" despite how she was acting, she didn't collapse in a sobbing pile of fur on the wooded ledge; she still looked like he was going to try to take off. Needless to say, this greatly worried the two pups with her.

Mist crawled slowly over to her aunt, tears filling her eyes, the little newborn wanted so much to somehow help Katarra, and she wanted to stop her from possibly hurting herself. Mist gently nipped at 

Katarra's wing membrane, trying to get her attention, and then moved up to cling to her aunt's soft fur, "…Please don't go…please…" she sobbed, "…I lost grandma, I don't want to lose you too."

Katarra sighed softly; she didn't want to worry her little niece, "…You…you won't lose me, Mist…" She lowered her wings to gently scratch Mist's head with her thumb claw. The small newborn had her mother, but other than nursing her, Hail wasn't a good mother at all…without Corona, Mist would need to turn to Katarra more now…she couldn't risk losing her life when there was a pup depending on her.

Tears dripped slowly from her fur onto the wood of the medical roost as she held her niece, "…I won't go, Mist…I won't go, for you…" she took a deep, shuddering breath, "Still, I just…I just wish there was something I could have done…I never wanted this to happen to mother…"

While the two females cried, Noxx stood there, tears slowly filling his own eyes; he never wanted his best friend to feel like she did. He wanted to do something for her, but she was already being held and comforted by Katarra, he couldn't intrude on that…though, after a moment of thought, he knew what he could do.

He turned away from Mist and Katarra, facing another knothole that overlooked the ceremony, "…I'll go…"


	12. The Burning

-1_**'The Burning'**_

Outside, Muse and Lyre had left the crowd of bats and flew towards the boulder Aria and the owls stood on in the same spiral pattern Dionysus and Liber had flew in. Despite their old age, they flew gracefully, both dipping down into the pit that contained Corona's body and grabbing a small claw full of herbs.

The two lesser elders flew to opposite sides of the boulder Aria and the smaller owls stood on to two, smaller, plate-like rocks and dropped their herbs. When the two older bats landed, Dionysus and Liber, commanded by a silent cue, each clipped a long blade of grass growing along the sides of the boulder and held it proudly in their beaks as they turned and placed the tips of the grass in the fire Bacchus held in his talons.

Being careful not to extinguish the glowing tips of the grass, yet still keeping their movements synchronized and relatively graceful, they moved towards the plate-like rocks and placed the small, burning blade slightly under the small piles of herbs and began fanning the flames. It didn't take long for the breeze their wings created to turn the small burning embers within the herbs into two bold fires; the main part of The Burning hadn't even begun, and it was already beginning to be a brilliant display of dancing flames.

As Dionysus and Liber continued fanning the flames, blowing thick smoke over the entire Silverwing Colony, Aria once again took her place in the spotlight, "There isn't a single one of us here who hasn't been touched by Corona's kindness…" again, her voice quivered in false sadness as she continued to speak, "I cannot tell you how many mid-day talks I've had with the dear girl as she sacrificed the restful mornings she could have been having in her roost to help out the sick children and mothers in the medical roost…many of us would not be here if not for her dedication to your health…"

She bowed her head just slightly as she watched her colony's reaction from the corners of her eyes before continuing with her speech, "We owe her respect…we owe her this honor to be sent into Nocturna's wings in front of all those she loved so much…"

Inside Tree Haven, Mist looked at Noxx with wide eyes as she continued to cling to Katarra's fur, "Noxx, no! You can't go; don't you see the owls out there? They'll rip any bat in half without thinking about it!" she knew about the treaty, how owls were, technically, no longer a threat…but she was right, an owl could easily rip a bat in half…and with his size, it'd be like crunching a dry leaf for them…

It was clear that, even with her deep concern, he was more than willing to go out there…the little bat knew what he saw in his dreams, and burning Corona's body was barbaric and unnecessary. Before Mist or Katarra could protest any further, he spread his wings and jumped out of the knothole…away from the comfort of the nursery roost.

"Noxx!" Mist yelled as she let go of Katarra's fur to crawl as fast as she could to the knothole Noxx had just disappeared from. She looked down in time to see Noxx flapping his wings as fast as he could to stay aloft from his fall. He was headed straight for the owls…what was he planning to do? She wanted to stand there and watch, until she lost him in a cloud of smoke.

When she could no longer see her friend, she, too, spread her wings and prepared to fly, but a pair of white wings wrapped around her as Katarra stopped her from taking flight, "Mist, calm down!" she spoke softly as the pup struggled in her grasp, trying yet again to calm her niece, "Your friend is strong, you can see it in his eyes…" she stroked Mist's head again with her thumb claw as she watched Noxx's disappearing shadow within the smoke, "…He'll be okay, I know he will…"

Mist sobbed softly as the thought of possibly losing her friend crossed her mind and she buried her face in Katarra's soft fur, not wanting to see if anything bad happened, "…I know he's strong…" came her muffled voice, "…he…he is The Hero…" saying that out loud helped…but it also made her thoughts of him dying worse…after all, Shade Silverwing, the little hero Noxx so resembled, didn't make it out alive when he tried to help someone he cared about.

Noxx coughed and choked as he flew through the smoke produced by the burning herbs, he was beginning to feel lightheaded, but there was no way he was going to let that stop him from stopping the ceremony. Despite his determination, he could feel himself fading in and out…no, he wasn't fading in and out, he still felt completely awake…the world around him was fading from what he knew to be normal…to something horrific.

In his eyes, the forest beyond the smoke filled air turned into a horrible, charred wasteland. The land he flew over was blackened and lifeless, the few patches of grass that remained where set ablaze and small veins of liquid fire flowed through cracks in the barren earth. The lake he loved to play around was no longer filled with the clear waters it should normally have…the scent rising through the air said the entire lake was filled with blood.

Noxx's heart beat wildly with fear as he blinked, causing the cataclysmic scene his mind produced to fade back into the reality of the northern forest…what had he just seen? This was one of the many visions he had that he wished would never come true…yet…he felt, with an uncomfortable certainty, that what he had just seen would come to pass…

Paying no attention to Noxx, or anyone else around her, Aria began finishing her eulogy for Corona, "As we have heard in the stories of our past, there is a great tree in the underworld, it is our gift from Nocturna so that we may find eternal peace…yet, we also know that there are many trials for a bat to face down there…" she lowered her wings and Bacchus rose above her, fully showing the impressive flame he carried to the awestruck colony of bats.

"This is why," she continued as Bacchus hovered above the pit, "we burn the bodies of those we've lost…The Burning Tree, The Tree of Life, is made of living fire. By burning the bodies of those who have fallen, we are helping them by ending their trip to the dark underworld and sending them straight into the fire of Nocturna's Tree." She flicked her wingtips and Muse and Lyre obediently moved to her side, "It is with great sadness that we have to send poor Corona off…but it is with great joy that we know we are about to send her to a better place."

Noxx broke through the cloud of smoke to see Bacchus about to drop the torch into the pit that contained Corona's body, "No!" he gasped silently as he beat his wings even harder to make it to the pit in time. As he closed his eyes to strain his wings harder, the horrific vision returned; only this time, it didn't go away when he blinked. No, the desolate landscape remained, and it was no less horrible to glimpse it a second time…in fact…it was, if possible, more horrible than the last time.

His eyes darted around the area, trying to catch a glimpse of something that was familiar, something that told him this wasn't real…he wished to see his mother's kind, loving smile, to hear Mist's voice, anything to break this horrible vision. In his panic to see what he knew to be familiar to him, he didn't realize the pressure of a nearly deafening silence pressing against his ears.

As he came to realize it, his ears perked up, straining to hear just a small sliver of sound, but he heard nothing, not even the crackle of the liquid fire below him. He took a deep breath and barked sound at the ground, hoping to see a sliver slab of rock in his mind's eye, but nothing came back to him. He gasped hoarsely and folded his ears back against his head…if he couldn't hear any sound, he didn't want to feel the pressure of the silence against his ears…he could handle being deaf in the ears…but the pressure was going to make his head explode, he could feel it.

He closed his eyes and wished as hard as he possibly could for the sound to come back. As he felt a slight vibration brush against his fun, he was finally able to hear a deep rumbling sound, he sighed in relief and opened his eyes. But, as he saw what it was that was making the noise, he immediately wished for the sound to go away.

Following where the sound was resonating from, his eyes locked onto the horizon. At first, it seemed there was nothing there, the ground was just a thick dark line separating the sky…it was nothing at all…then, in one quick blink of his eyes, something shot up from the ground. It was too far away for Noxx to use echoes, and the fact that he didn't know what it was, the fact that something such as a speck on the horizon could cause such noise scared him greatly.

He squinted, trying to make out what had erupted from the ground, but it seemed that his curiosity was drawing whatever was closer. He quickly realized that it wasn't just one thing, but a whole bunch of things…huge pillars of jagged rock began shooting up from the ground…and they were heading straight for him!

He gasped and banked sharply to the left, turning himself around completely in the air, pushing his little wings as hard as he possibly could. As he tried to escape the pillars, his eyes began to water, why was all of this happening? Why was his mind showing him such a horrible vision? Shouldn't it have faded by now? Could this all possibly be real? He closed his eyes tightly and strained his wings to carry him faster, but it was no use…

The sick cracking of the dead earth was almost directly underneath him as still more pillars shot up from the ground below him. He yelped quietly as one brushed sharply against the very end of his tail membrane, what was causing this? Why did these rocks seem to have minds of their own? More importantly, why were they trying to kill him in the first place?

As he continued to scream these questions in his mind, the a pillar rose up directly beneath him, he was just barely able to dodge it by leaning to the right. Now that they seemed to be trying their hardest to impale him, he continued to bank to the left and the right, zigzagging in the air, each time narrowly missing getting a sharp column of rock shoved through his little body.

Finally, he shouted, unable to keep his thoughts from spilling from his mouth, "Why is this happening to me?!"

Silence…

Everything was dead silent once again…was this his answer? It couldn't be…it didn't even seem to apply to his question…but it _did _stop when he shouted his question…it didn't matter, he liked the silence now compared to the thunderous crack of the chasing rocks…he didn't want the sound to come back now, and he hoped that wishing for it to stay away would work the same as wishing it would come back.

It didn't…

His ears twitched as he heard a scratching noise, like claws against rock. It hurt his teeth just to listen to it, his ears lay flat against his head, trying to block the sound out but the sound didn't want to be ignored. It grew from a quiet scratching to a loud scraping, from a loud scraping to a slow cracking…

His eyes fell to the ground below him as he felt the air vibrate with the loud rumbling again, he wasn't ready to fly that hard again! He was pushing his body just to stay in the air. He gasped as a crack began to open up below him, it was much bigger than the small, almost circular cracks that spawned the pillars. This crack was in a straight line, spreading as far as his eyes and ears could see to both his left and his right.

With another sickening break of the earth, one that almost deafened him, the crack opened up into a huge fissure. Before he even had the chance to gasp, a thick stone wall shot up from the ground, completely blocking his view of the dimly lit sky. He flared his wings, using all his strength just to try to avoid slamming into the wall. Exhausted, almost too tired to stay in the air, but too afraid to land for fear of not being able to avoid those spiked pillars in time should they begin to rise again, he flapped his little wings just enough to stay in the air in front of the dark stone wall before him.

Breathlessly, he sprayed out sound to the left and right of him, trying to keep his echoes as close to the stone that stretched out around him. When his echoes never returned he gasped, although part of him wasn't surprised in the least, the wall never ended. Once the wall had risen to it's full height, all fell quiet again, the only sound he could hear was the frantic beating of his heart pounding in his ears.

But again, that silence did not last long…

The newest painful sound of grinding rock was not coming from behind him or below him--for that he felt he should be thankful--but from the wall in front of him. His eyes widened as he watched part of the wall chip away, he heard muffled growling from inside the stone as if something inside was trying furiously to escape. As the rock continued to crack and chip away, a noticeable shape began to appear, it looked much like a bat…but something didn't seem right…other than the fact that there was a bat trapped in a wall of solid stone.

The wall bulged, as if the bat trapped within was lunging out at him, spraying small bits of rock out over him. He winced away from the wall just slightly, fear wanting to drive him away, but pure curiosity holding him in his place in the sky. Noxx's eyes watered from the violent spray of dust the struggling stone bat sprayed out at him. As he blinked, trying to clear the dust from his eyes, the shape of the stone bat had changed…it was no longer the shape of a full-bodied bat…no, it was the shape of a bat skeleton. It's wings were outstretched, it's muzzle was turned to the sky, and it's mouth opened up in a silent scream as if it fought for it's life to the very end.

Out of nowhere, a silent wind ran along the surface of the wall, brushing the rest of the dust away from the skeleton, revealing its bleached white form. His heart skipped a beat, he wasn't sure if his heart had many more beats to skip…with all that was going on around him, he was amazed that his little heart hadn't given out all together.

As the wind died down, the skeleton's top half began to tremble violently, cracking the stone holding it to the wall. Its head was the first thing it wrenched free, its hollow eyes glaring right through Noxx. It opened it's barely attached jaw and growled at him, blowing out the scent of death on its nonexistent breath, "…you…"

Noxx squeaked in fear and wheeled around in the air, flapping his little wings as hard as he could to get away from the wall and the living skeleton trapped within it. But the wall itself was three steps ahead of him, the minute he turned away from it, it shot up from the ground directly in front of him. He let out a breathless scream, he couldn't take anymore…why was he experiencing all of this?!

He felt like closing his wings around him and ending it. As he stared at the skeleton and the wall that had followed him, as he looked around at the desolate wasteland around him, as the feeling of hopelessness crashed into him with full force, it's what he decided to do. But, as he flared his wings once last time, the skeleton wrenched its bare, left wing out of the stone that held it and grabbed Noxx harshly by the neck.

Again, it opened its jaws and breathed out in an unnatural voice, "…you…know…too…much…" with each word it spoke, it's claws tightened around Noxx's neck, the sharp points digging into his skin and cutting off what little air he was able to take in.

Noxx's panic renewed his will to live, all he could think about now was getting out of the skeleton's grasp, he just wanted to breath again…anything he did after that would be a miracle to him. His little claws scratched at the dead claws holding him, but with his weakening body, he barely made a scratch. As his wide eyes stared into the hollow sockets of the bat skeleton, his vision began to fade in and out. Confusion swarmed around his mind, he was about to kill himself, but the skeleton 'saved' him…only to kill him itself? It didn't make sense to him…

At least, it didn't make sense until the bat carcass spoke again.

It brought Noxx closer, pressing his nose against its nonexistent one, "…He…has…plans…for you…" Noxx knew that, if he could breathe, the skeleton's 'breath' would have easily made him vomit. The living dead holding him continued to speak, "…it's…His will…that…you're…still alive…be…grateful…to Him…"

Slowly, the wall began to silently crumble away and the skeleton itself began to disintegrate. As Noxx began to lose consciousness, the dead bat forcefully tossed him away, letting the runt of the Silverwing colony fall like a rock. Another harsh wind blew, blowing the remains of the skeleton away while the wall continued to crumble. As Noxx's world faded to darkness, the sound returned; he faintly heard the dulled rumblings of the falling stone wall, the frantic pounding of his heart in his ears, but above all that, he again hear the harsh whispering of the skeleton, "…Hail Zotz!"

Then, just as quickly as the darkness of unconsciousness enclosed around him, his eyes snapped open and he gasped, the horrid scene around him had changed back to the peaceful night air around Tree Haven. As a soft wind blew, the wounds he received on his neck in his 'vision' began to sting. Fear caused his heart to beat like a hummingbird's wings, had all of that really happened?

His resolve to stop The Burning Ceremony was replaced by the need to get out of the area immediately. He flared his wings as wide as they could go, slowing his quick fall, and flapped his wings as hard as he could, the fatigue he felt in his vision was now gone…something he also felt very thankful for at the moment. He closed his eyes and strained his little body, not caring where he was going, and that was obvious by the fact that he was headed straight for Bacchus.

The larger owl, paying more attention to his duties rather than a stray bat in the skies, was caught completely off guard when Noxx smacked straight into him. Bacchus was knocked back an inch or two by the speed at which Noxx was flying, due to the force the little bat had in him, the owl dropped the torch he carried in surprise. His head swiveled around to watch Noxx, his eyes glaring needles into his furry little body as he darted into the thick forest across the lake.

The Silverwing runt was the least of his worries for the moment, he turned his head to look at the torch he had dropped a moment ago…which falling in what seemed like slow motion towards his father…

Dionysus, like his two sons, was concentrating only on his given duties of fanning the flames and he didn't notice the torch his strongest son had dropped until it hit him. He squawked in shock and stumbled forward on the boulder, tripped on the edge and fell forward into the pit that contained the herbs and Corona's dead body, taking the torch with him. Dionysus' tortured screams, and Bacchus and Liber's terrified squawks was drowned out by an amazed call rising from the crowd of Silverwings. The elder owl falling into the pit sparked a magnificent fire, blowing a great cloud of purple smoke over the colony of bats.

As an effect of the herbs, none of them seemed to care that their eyes could momentarily register colors, all they cared about was the wispy figure of both a bat and an owl that rose out of the pit through the smoke. Aria once again opened her wings to their full span, causing Muse and Lyre to respond in kind, "Nocturna's will be done!" the high female elder shouted, "Hail Nocturna!"

Every bat in the Silverwing colony shouted up to the sky, still following the two 'spirits' they saw rising through the smoke, repeating their elder's words, "Hail Nocturna!" their cries echoed throughout the forest, creating an eerie voice on the wind that caused every animal within earshot to look up even though they did not understand.

Inside Tree Haven, tears spilled from both Katarra and Mist's eyes. Though they did not see the 'spirits' rising from the smoke, they suffered a great loss "…Mother…" she whispered as she looked away, still absentmindedly stroking the fur of her young niece.

Mist looked outward, almost unable to look away, "…grandma…" slowly, she forced her head to turn away and pressed her face into Katarra's soft fur. After a moment of sobbing, she spoke again, her voice muffled by her aunt's fur, "…Noxx…" she had lost her grandmother and her best friend…Katarra was really all she had left now…and the medics kept saying she was going to die…


	13. Reminder

'_**Reminder'**_

_**--Zotz, Rasputin, Saul-- **_

_I died at the claws of my own son, what a wondrous feeling that was! To feel the anger and hatred towards all living things running so wildly through the strong body I graced him with was simply amazing! As he ripped through my flesh with his fangs and claws , I can truly say that was my proudest moment as a father. he was doing exactly what my lord wanted him to: slowly becoming the vessel that would serve as his earthly body. _

_I had served my purpose and I thought I had served it well…even though I was not a Vampyrum, I was fully prepared to take my place in the city Zotz had created for all his loyal followers. As I felt my neck snap under my son's strong jaws, and I felt the cold, welcoming fingers of death drag me downwards, I expected to see my reward immediately…_

…_but I did not…_

_I fell to the barren land of the underworld as if my son had just dropped me from our place in the sky ---he killed me mid-flight! If that was not a promising vessel for my Lord, I do not know what else I could have chosen--- and I fell straight through the solid earth of the living into the land of the dead. The impact of my fall surely would've hurt any liven creature…but it felt so good to me…_

_I felt my newly reconstructed body snap as I hit the dry earth…such an incredible noise! My bones set themselves in their correct place as if I had never been broken…such was the grace of Zotz! Clearly he showed mercy on my broken body as he knew I was his most loyal servant, the immediate healing of my wounds was proof of this! I eagerly looked around, looking for either the city that was to be my new home or a regal Vampyrum, blessed with their obsidian teeth, that would escort me to that wondrous place._

_As I waited, I spread my wings and lifted from the ground in an attempt to either see where I was supposed to go, or let who was supposed to be my escort see me. With each of my wing beats, I silently admired my size; surely Zotz was amazed that he had such a large follower! I was at least two times the size of any normal Vampyrum…perhaps He would allow me to be ruler of the Vampyrum City!_

_As soon as that thought crossed my mind, however, I received the answers to that and more…_

"…_Not quite…"_

_I gasped as I looked around, so many nights have I heard that powerful voice in my dreams, my Lord was about to show himself to me! I slowed my wingbeats and landed on the dry ground, there was no way someone, even a loyal servant such as myself, should be higher than Cama Zotz Himself. I lowered myself to all fours, bowing my head in respect, as I felt the ground tremble beneath my claws. Even though I no longer had a working heart, I felt the sensation of it quickening in excitement…I was about to meet the God I had served so loyally for nearly all my life!_

_As the ground shook more violently, a loud crack nearly deafened me ---Not that I cared much, I wasn't going to need my ears here--- and, much to my dismay, the crack did not come from in front of me…but below me…I fell downward into complete darkness, but I did not scream…surprised as I was, screaming was a sign of weakness, a sign of fear…and I knew that such a loyal servant as myself had nothing to fear, even with the negative comment that came with the opening of the fissure._

_As I continued to fall, a sharp odor stung my senses, it burned my nose and caused my eyes to water…it even seemed to dig past my fur and tear right into my skin…I gasped as I knew now what I was falling into…the ground hadn't swallowed me, Zotz Himself had…_

_Mere seconds after this horrifying realization, I plunged into my Lord's stomach acid…the acid in which I would burn in for all eternity…a punishment that I didn't think I deserved. Falling into that disgusting, painful pool of bile was much like falling into the angry ocean. Waves of acid crashed against me and the violent current took it's chances to pull me under, I could feel the acid stripping me of my lush fur, my flesh, and my muscle, leaving nothing but bone behind…I felt a sensation of pain like no other, which was something I didn't understand…this 'life' was supposed to be void of all pain, the followers of His Majesty was supposed to feel nothing but eternal bliss! _

_Each time my flesh and fur was stripped from my body, and I had a moment of numbness in my bones, it was immediately given back to me…along with a whole new sense of excruciating pain. When I had a moment to where my head was above the acid, which wasn't often at all, I took the chance to, for once in both my life and my afterlife, to question my Lord._

"_My Lord!" I sputtered at my first chance, "Why is it you punish me?!" Again, the current dragged me under, stripping new flesh and fur away from my body. As my bones floated to the top, I opened my bare jaw and yelled, "What did I do in my life that has displeased you so?!"_

_At my final question the churning acid stopped for a moment and became still, save for the ripples created by my pain induced thrashing. The cavernous stomach of my Lord was silent, I couldn't even hear my splashing, yet I clearly knew I was doing it. Then, just as quickly as the acid pool stood still, it began to bubble violently before shooting upward like a powerful geyser. In one powerful heave, I was shot out of the mouth of Zotz, writhing as a mere skeleton in a puddle of stomach acid. _

_In many ways, I knew I should be honored to be the vomit of my Lord and Master, and as such, I bowed my head and averted my eyes…after receiving such a punishment, I knew I didn't even deserve to look upon the face of the deity I devoted my life to.._

"_You are…pathetic, Anubis…" His voice, a loud hiss, was heavy with angry disappointment. "I give you…a simple task…of preparing me an earthly body…and…you…fail!"_

"_I have not failed you!" I protested, still not raising my head, "I have given you the most powerful body I have encountered, I gave you the body of my son!"_

"…_You are too prideful…" he hissed, "…Your son, however powerful he may be, is not willing to accept me! He resists my power…his body will not be ready when it is my time to arise!" I could smell his putrid breath as he yelled at me, "And…if he is not ready…I will disappear like an echo from the world of the living…and it shall be your fault!"_

_I cringed away from his disappointment, "…the process takes time, my Lord, you said so yourself…it will take ten times as many hearts of living bats than it would waiting for the next eclipse…" I paused, not wanting to upset him further and be returned to the acid pool, "Perhaps, in that time, he'll come to accept you and your power, he will eventually do your bidding! And, when he does, you will return stronger than ever before!"_

_He growled, again, causing my body of bones to tremble slightly, "…for your sake, you had better be correct…should this fail, your second trip to this world will be filled with pain far beyond your darkest nightmares…"_

_I didn't understand what he meant by my 'second trip', "My…'second trip', My Lord?" my voice shook slightly, but it was not noticeable, at least I hoped it wasn't, "…you mean…you're going to give me a second chance?"_

_He growled, acknowledging that I was correct, "…yes…" a harsh wind blew and I no longer felt his presence near me, but it was now all around me. "Open your eyes, you sniveling pile of bones, and receive your instructions…"_

_I obediently did as I was told and looked up to where he was standing. In his place was the body of a pup that, just by looking at him, had not been born. His eyes were not yet open, but his nose twitched, sniffing for the milk he would soon expect, but would never receive, "I have taken the life of this pup…" My Lord's voice echoed throughout the underworld, causing the pup to whimper, "His mother does not yet know…" he chuckled deeply, "nor do I think she would care, she didn't want the weak thing in the first place…but you…you can succeed where I have seen three others fail…find his mother in the Vampyrum forests and rest your heavy spirit within her womb." _

_He again chuckled darkly, "…you will not be much different from the pup I have taken…such a weak servant will make an even weaker pup…she will not love you…even so, if you die in her care before your son can become the willing vessel I sought in the first place…you will suffer for an eternity…"_

_I nodded, the thought of an unloving mother not fazing me in the least, "I understand, my Lord…I will not fail you again…" _

_As I confirmed my loyalty for the thousandth time, I expected my body to be returned to it's normal state. Before I could raise the question, he answered me, "You do not deserve the strong body I granted you with in your first life…crawl like the lowly insect you are to the Burning Tree…you shall receive no more help from me…"_

_Enraged, I grinded my teeth together as I loyally did as I was commanded…it took me ages to reach that Tree…and I was constantly attacked by Vampyrum patrols…but I made it…I always hated the Burning Tree I stood before, it was the last defiance of the Goddess that should have never existed, but I crawled up to the knothole despite my hatred…because that is what I was told to do._

_As my spirit, a skeleton as light as the wind itself, entered the world of the living , I flew immediately to the Southern Temples that housed the Vampyrum Spectrum…the regal family I should have originally been born into…It took me several days to find the Vampyrum mother who cared not about her child, but through talk and rumors, the others of the colony unwittingly directed me to her._

…_I entered her womb and waited patiently…until things went black…_

_---------------------------------------------------_

Rasputin, the resentful 'runt' of the Vampyrum Spectrum colony, stretched as he awoke midday. He was small, skinny, and considered to be weak by all of his colony…the only thing that kept them from killing him was the white markings of a bat skeleton against his dark fur…they saw it as a sign from Zotz.

He growled loudly as the sun shone directly into his eyes, "Damn the accursed sun!" he mumbled as he rubbed his eyes with his wings, "…Can't wait until Zotz completely destroys it…"

Above him, someone chuckled, "Aw, did Bones wake up on the wrong side of the tree?" Saul, a large, impressive Black Foxwing, looked down on the partner 'Zotz' had forced upon him, he couldn't stand the smaller Vampyrum any more than Rasputin could stand him…but, just because they were working together by some 'divine command', didn't mean they had to like each other.

He chewed on a twig because he knew Rasputin hated the fact that he was partly vegetarian, "Did Zotz come to you in a dream again?" his tone wasn't mocking at the time…as a converted 'child of Nocturna', he loyally served Zotz and seemed to eagerly await any messages Rasputin may have received through his dreams.

Rasputin sighed angrily, almost growling, "…Just a reminder of our purpose…nothing more…" he spread his wings and let go of his branch, "Come on!" he growled, "We've still got much ground to cover if we wish to make it to the northern forests…"

Saul sighed, deep down, he felt he had a greater purpose rather than following a rude runt with no regard for life of any sort…but for now, this was all he had, so he spread his wings and followed after Rasputin, keeping his wingbeats slow so he didn't jump ahead of his hotheaded partner in crime.


	14. Rescue Plan

'**Rescue Plan'**

_**--Aria/Bacchus/Liber/Mist/Katarra/Serena--**_

As the thick smoke of the Burning Ceremony cleared from the air, Aria confronted the grieving owls, "…it seems that we have both suffered great losses…" she extended her wing, touching the very tip to Bacchus's right wing, "I am deeply sorry for what happened…" he voice sounded genuinely sincere, but as always, it was not, "However, you should take comfort that your father is now in a better pla---"

Bacchus cut her off, tired of even hearing her voice, "Stifle your nonsense, Silverwing!" His head swiveled around to face her, his large eyes burned with anger, and pain, "It was one of your own that cause my brother and I to lose our father!" his feathers bristled as he spread the wing she touched, roughly knocking her away, "We don't need any of your false comfort! I'm not as slow minded as your colony is, false sympathy and the promise of an afterlife will not soothe us! It will not correct the wrong that scrawny bat has committed"

He quickly took a step forward, making it so his beak was touching the tip of Aria's nose. A deep rumbling noise rose from his throat, "…if you wish to truly comfort my brother and I in the situation your colony has put us in…You will relinquish the small bat to us so that we may 'teach' him what he did was wrong…" it was clear that 'teaching' Noxx meant ending his young life.

Even in such close proximity to a large owl who could easily rip her in half, Aria merely smirked and chuckled at his request, "You want to teach that little troublemaker a lesson?" she stretched out her wing and pointed across the lake, "If you can find him, he's yours." her ears twitched as thunder rolled in the distance, "You may want to hurry though, the coming storm may claim him before you have the chance…"

Liber stared silently at the two talk, he couldn't believe that the elder of the Silverwing colony didn't care a bit about one of her own…and he couldn't believe that his brother wanted blood for something that was clearly an accident. Yes, he missed his father dearly, but the old owl knew he was going to leave this world soon, otherwise, he wouldn't have passed on his duty to Bacchus…Dionysus knew this was to be his last ceremony, why didn't Bacchus see this?

With a shaking voice, he spoke up, "B-brother, I---"

"Stay out of this, Liber!" Bacchus snapped, cutting his younger brother off, "…this is between me and the bat…you'll be able to take revenge on the small one with me soon enough, I promise you that…"

Liber obediently shut his beak, he didn't like this side of his brother…but the generals of the owl army loved it…Bacchus had the perfect 'no mercy' attitude that would make him a great soldier one day…it was only a matter of time, he knew that…and, with his actions tonight, he'd only be brought into the attention of the generals even faster.

Bacchus narrowed his eyes at Aria, "…What leader would offer up a member of their own species, their own family, to someone so easily?"

Aria merely smirked, "I'm giving you what you want, is there really a reason to question my actions?" she chuckled, "The boy is nothing but trouble for all of us, and I highly doubt that he'll make it through our migration, which is coming up soon…if he was to be taken care of beforehand, we wouldn't have to slow down, he wouldn't hold us back…" she smiled wickedly, showing her fangs, "…and, if it pleases you, I'll offer his mother to you as well, should you do a good job disposing of her son…after all, she gave birth to him, she's the reason the troublemaker is alive."

Bacchus spread his wings, "…I do not understand you, Silverwing…nor will I care to try…I'll take the boy for now…it will depend on how my brother and I feel later on if we accept your offer of taking his mother as well…" he lifted off the ground, "Come, Liber, we have business elsewhere…"

Liber sighed and silently took off after his brother, leaving Aria alone on the boulder over the fire pit.

A single raindrop hit the Elder Silverwing's head, causing her to turn to the ones of her colony who still remained outside the tree, "Nocturna has sent us rain to wash away the remnants of our loved one, we mustn't hinder her in any way! Return to your roosts!" with that final order, she took to the skies and flew up to the elders roost, the other Silverwings and their young followed suit, taking to the skies and returning to their own roosts.

Serena flew with the others, but the direction in which she flew was not the direction she wanted to go, the large crowd of bats entering Tree Haven before the storm hit was shoving her away from the lake. Because the herbs from the Burning had clouded her mind, she never saw exactly what had happened to her son…no one saw what had happened to Noxx, all they saw was what Aria told them to see…But mother's instinct told her that something had happened to her young pup.

Despite her attempts to break through the crowd of bats who were still slightly out of it, she was still too weak from little sleep and the effects of the herbs they had all just inhaled, and she was helplessly shoved into the nursery roost. Her nostrils flared, searching for Noxx's scent…he had never made it to her side during the Burning, and now she couldn't even catch his scent…the remnants of smoke covering nearly every scent that normally lingered within the tree.

"Noxx?!" she called out frantically over the voices of all the others in her colony, "Noxx, sweetie, can you hear me?" She paused a moment, searching all around with her eyes and ears for her son, hoping to see him flying around close by, trying to make his way to her through the crowds. Her heart quickened in panic when Noxx didn't come…he wasn't at the ceremony, he wasn't flying about Tree Haven…she was truly beginning to fear the worst about her little Miracle.

Her strength now slightly renewed due to worry and panic, she broke free of the large crowd of bats --many of which were still to groggy to find their proper roosts-- and flew upwards towards the Elder's Roost. "Aria!" She called out before she was even near the roost, she was far too worried to just wait. If she could call one of them to her, she'd be able to figure out what had happened to her child, "Aria!"

Aria's ears twitched as Serena's voice reached her, she growled softly to herself, no one was ever brazen enough to bother her after The Burning. It was why she insisted on using hallucinogenic herbs to cover the bodies…once the ceremony was over, no one was ever in their right mind enough to bother her or question her methods…and one their heads cleared, they never remembered enough of her words and actions to wonder if what she was doing was right.

A low growl escaped her throat as she folded her ears against her head to block out Serena's cries while she finished her prayer, "…should those sent to you escape your might, know that more shall be on their way soon enough…" she smirked as she slowly opened her eyes, "…and enjoy the owl…"

"Aria!" Serena called out one last time as she finally reached the Elder's Roost, "Aria…" she now whispered breathlessly, her strength now gone for the moment, "…I need to talk to you…about Noxx…where is---"

Worried that she had been caught, Aria rose up to her hind legs and flared her wings, not in a threatening manner, but in a way of praise, "Hail Nocturna!" as she finished, she lowered herself back to all fours and turned to face Serena, "Serena, my child, what is it that troubles you?" her voice was now soothing and calm, "Is your boy having his visions again?"

Serena shook her head, "…no…well…I do not know, Aria…I-I can't find him…" tears slowly began to fill her eyes, "…he wasn't at the Ceremony and now I can't find him around Tree Haven…" softly, she began sobbing, "…What if something happened to him? What if…" her voice cracked, she almost couldn't bring herself to say it, "…what if the owls got him?!"

As Serena collapsed onto the roost, sobbing loudly, Aria smirked, We can only hope… "Serena," she cooed, "We're at peace with the owls now, one wouldn't dare break the new Treaty, they're one of the most law-abiding species in the forest." she gently ran her claws through the mother Silverwing's fur, "He's probably out playing, he'll come back, I'm sure of it." She could tell Serena's mind still wasn't clear and, even though the rain was pounding loudly against the tree, she didn't seem to realize there was a storm assaulting the forests….as such, Aria made no point in bringing it to Serena's groggy attention, "If he isn't back soon, we'll send out a search party, okay?"

Serena raised her head, tears glistening in her fur and eyes, "Okay…" she nodded and stood, "…thank you so much, Aria…" convinced things would be okay now, she spread her wings and began to fly back to her roost…Aria's false words of comfort eased her mind so much that she had completely forgotten about the storm outside, that Noxx couldn't be out playing in such a harsh rainstorm…even the strongest of bats couldn't fly through this…and Noxx was far from the strongest.

Aria smirked, convincing everyone in her colony was far too easy…no one questioned her, and the ones who did --the Brownwing warrior, his mate, and their weak, albino child-- were all dead as far as she knew…It was truly as if Zotz blessed her with a colony who followed her so blindly, and she was grateful to Him for that.

A light smile played on Serena's face as she glided downward to her roost, just thinking of Noxx playing with his friends made her heart soar. The question of why Noxx would even want to play after the death of his friend's grandmother crossed her mind…none of the other newborns seemed to understand what the Ceremony was for, perhaps Noxx didn't either…or, if he did, he was incredibly resilient. Aria had said he would return, so, for the moment, she believed her.

She blinked a few times, trying her hardest to keep her sleepy eyes opened until she reached her roost to wait for her son, but the sound of soft sobbing and the muffled mention of Noxx's name caused them to immediately snap open, panic now causing her to be fully awake for the moment. She clearly recognized the voice behind the muffled sobs, poor Mist must've crying her little eyes out because of her grandmother's passing. She was sure Noxx was with his young friend, trying his hardest to comfort her during all of this. Anxious to see her son, and make sure he and Mist were okay, she banked sharply to the left and swooped into the medical roost.

"Noxx, sweetie." she whispered softly as she gently touched down on the medical roost, not wanting to disturb Noxx comforting Mist, "I've been looking for y---" She stopped herself when she realized it wasn't Noxx who was comforting Mist, but Corona's daughter. She took no steps further, nor did she make the attempt to leave…Mist had mentioned Noxx's name, and she needed to know why.

"…He's gone…" Mist sobbed into Katarra's fur, "…he's gone and it's all my fault…I should have stopped him…I should have---"

Katarra gently shushed her, "…Mist…don't blame yourself…If I he hadn't have heard me say that I wanted to lay mother to rest, he wouldn't have done what he did…It's not you fault, it's mi---"

Mist jerked her head away from Katarra's fur, "Don't say that!" tears still spilled from her now angry eyes, "Even if Noxx hadn't heard you say that, he still would have gone out! He showed you his vision, he knew Grandma was okay and that we didn't need to burn her body! He would've gone because he knew it was right, it's just how he is!" she sniffed and looked away, "…It…it isn't our fault…" she gritted her teeth, "It's Aria's fault and our stupid traditions!"

Katarra sighed, her young niece was already so bitter towards their elders…even some of the older members of the colony, the ones who knew and used to practice the older ways, didn't see the stupidity of the traditions that were put into effect since Aria received the status of High Elder…and many never would. In a way, Mist's realization of how the new traditions were wrong would help her stay alive in the colony…she'd know not to mate with one who so blindly followed Aria, and, in turn, she'd grow to have a better life…For her niece's sake, she hoped that would be the case.

Serena's heart skipped a beat as she listened to Mist and Katarra talk, Noxx was gone…she had lost her little Miracle while she was busy watching the Ceremony…she was a horrible mother to let something like that happen, she should have found him before she joined the crowd waiting to see Corona return to Nocturna…Again, silent tears filled her eyes...she needed the comfort of someone else who knew her loss, but couldn't bring herself to speak up...

"Mist…" Katarra whispered softly, trying to calm her now trembling niece, "What if Noxx isn't dead? You saw him fly away, maybe he's still on the other side of the lake?" it was a possibility, she certainly wasn't lying to Mist, Noxx could still be out there, it was just a matter of finding him before something else did.

Katarra's soft words, meant to calm Mist rather than eavesdropping Serena, brought new hope to the grieving mother bat. If there really was the possibility Noxx was still out there, she wouldn't wait for the promised search party. Finally finding the strength to speak up, she stepped forward, "...we'll have to find him then..."

Both Mist's and Katarra's fur bristled in surprise, Serena's scent had been masked by all the herbs in the medical roost, it was clear by their expressions as they turned to face her that they didn't know she was there.

"S-Serena..." Mist's voice, along with her body, was still shaking slightly, "...I didn't expect you to be awake...everyone else is still groggy...and you're always so tired..."

Serena shook her head, "I'm still tired...and my head feels like there are thousands of angry bees swarming inside...but that doesn't matter, my son comes first, and he always will."

Mist began to tear up again, not for Noxx or her grandmother, but because she only wished that her mother cared for her as much as Serena did for Noxx...

Katarra smiled softly, "He's lucky to have someone who cares for him so deeply." her claws gently scratched through Mist's fur, "He's lucky he has the both of you..." She continued to smile softly for both Serena and Mist, but inside, she felt no reason to smile...both her parents were dead, her brother would no longer care about her now that he had a family of his own...the one bat who cared for her, or used to care for her, was exiled from the colony and she feared she would never have the chance to see him again...

Serena smiled at Katarra's comment, but her expression quickly faded to a blank stare as her gaze focused on the knothole the two females stood in front of. The storm outside only seemed to be getting worse; the rain pounded down in sheets, she could see the water level of the normally calm lake begin to rise, and the rough winds were beginning to cause the tree they all roosted in to sway.

It was practically suicide to even think of flying out in such a storm, but, if Noxx was still out there, and the storm or something else hadn't claimed him, she wasn't going to wait for it to pass...she needed her pup just as much as he needed his mother. "I'm going to find him..."

Katarra's eyes widened, "Serena, wait." she wasn't going to stop the young mother from going, she knew there was no stopping a mother when it came to her pup, "If you're going, then I'm going with you..." she sighed, it was about time she left the colony anyway.

Mist clung to Katarra's fur tightly, trying to keep her last caring family member with her, "No!" she whimpered, "...I still don't want to lose you!" with eyes that reflected anger, hurt, and loss, she glared at Katarra, "...If you're going...then I'm going too..." There was no fear on her face, determination masked anything else she could have been feeling...like Serena, she wasn't going to be stopped.

Katarra shook her head quickly, "Mist, you can't, you're still too small to fly in this sto---"

"So is Noxx!" Mist snapped, "He's even smaller than I am!"

Katarra tried again, "You haven't slept yet, you won't be strong enou---"

"You're still hurt! Your wound has closed up, but the rain could open it again!...just spreading your wings could open it again!"

"...but, your mother..."

Mist bared her teeth, "My mother doesn't care about me! She does just enough to keep me alive, just enough to let others think that she isn't a bad mother! That isn't enough for me!" she began trembling again, "and don't bring up my father either! He was one of the scouts to check up on us, don't think I don't remember..." She looked away, "He took one look at me and never looked again...He wanted a son, I know he did...he wants nothing to do with me...he'll be happy if I die in this storm!" Defiance shined in her eyes as her distant gaze returned to Katarra, "But, you know what? I'm not going to die out there, I'm going out there with the both of you, we're going to find Noxx, and we're going to come back with a story that will reach my father's ears and show him that I'm strong enough!"

Unable to argue with her niece anymore, Katarra sighed, she knew very well that what Mist said was true...Hail didn't care for her and Leo...well, Leo was Leo...he only protected Katarra when they were little because he was taking up where he thought his mother was leaving off...Corona wanted Katarra to live her life the way she wanted, that way, if she was to die before her time, she could go happy...but Leo saw everyone as a threat to her health...she had very few friends as it was, and he did a brilliant job of driving them away...only one stayed by her side despite Leo's constant threats...and he was driven away by something neither of them could help...

"I understand, Mist…" Katarra finally said as Mist faced the knothole, "…but it just doesn't feel right putting you in this sort of danger…"

Mist smirked, now in a more adventurous mood than anything, "You're not putting me in any danger, aunt Katarra, I'm doing it myself."

Katarra sighed and joined the other two at the knothole, she wanted so badly to leave this colony, but she never thought her chance would be during such a harsh rainstorm. _I'm going to find you someday, Aelfric… _she spread her wings, thankful her wound didn't open up again, _…and this will be my first step towards you…I… _her heart sank as she began to wonder, _…I just hope you remember who I am…_

Serena and Mist took flight seconds after Katarra. Mist, being the one who saw the direction in which Noxx flew, eagerly took the lead despite the heavy, painful pounding of rain against her little body. The storm was obviously against them; the wind constantly knocked them off their course, and the rain was driving nails into their already weak bodies…It took them several minutes just to reach the boulder that Noxx ran into Bacchus over…it was going to take all their strength just to make it across the lake, which was now made terribly angry by the storm.


	15. A Reason To Leave

'A Reason to Leave'

Noxx had taken shelter in a large oak tree long before the storm reached the peak of it's strength. His small body trembled beneath a pile of dead leaves and grasses. His hiding placed carried the stench of a bird, but it was so faint, he had a feeling the makeshift nest had long since been abandoned. Even though he felt safe in his hideaway, he couldn't get what he had just seen in his vision out of his mind. What did he know? Who was keeping him alive? Zotz? He knew good and well that Nocturna was his protection, Zotz was nothing more than a false god…wasn't he?

That wasn't what scared thought, no, what the bat skeleton said to him was far from what scared him…What scared him was what he had after he had escaped the horrible vision…he had never sustained an injury from any of his dreams before. He had felt the wings of his pursuers brush against him, he had smelled the rancid breath of the monstrous Vampyrum, he could even hear the terrifying words it spoke…but never had its steel-like claws actually made a mark on him.

Perhaps the stinging sensation he felt around his neck before was also just a product of his dream? Maybe, in his panic, his mind hadn't been able to distinguish what was real and what was a hallucination brought on by the strong scent of the herbs and the rush of adrenaline? He tried to tell himself what his mother and Mist had been telling him all his life, that none of his dreams were real…none of it happened, none of it was going to happen, and certainly nothing could harm him. It was all in his mind and nothing more, was it not?

After a moment of silently trying to convince himself that he had imagined everything his mind had ever showed him, he finally felt at ease. With a slightly trembling claw, he scratched beneath his chin expecting the good feeling of a satisfied itch, but instead he felt a great amount of pain. He gasped and pulled his claw away in a panicked jerk, his wingtip was covered in fresh blood. He didn't scratch that hard, how could he be bleeding?

A flash of lightning lit up the sky and, for a moment, the bat skeleton appeared before him once more. It did nothing to him this time, it said nothing, it didn't even move. In the split second it was there, it just stood there, almost as if it was reminding him that what happened was real…and that it may very well happen again.

Nothing but a frightened squeak escaped him as he buried his entire body in the slowly decaying leaves that lined the bottom of his hiding place, "…I don't want this to happen anymore…" he whimpered, "…I don't want any of this…" his voice began to shake as frightened tears began to spill from his eyes, "…I want…I-I want my mom…"

"Pathetic…"

The wind outside began to pick up, blowing in and out of the cracks in the trees. It's rough voice began to sing loudly within the hollow chamber the small bat hid in…It sounded like so many voices at once, as if he was back inside the Echo Chamber…each voice cried out together…all voicing their disapproval of his weakness.

"A Hero should never cry for his mother! You're a disgrace!"

"I'm not a hero!" he yelled at the disembodied voices, "I'm not a hero! I'm just a runty little newborn who looks like the damn bat who did all those great things!" he growled, tears continued to spill from his eyes, but the fear in his voice was completely replaced by anger, "You know what? I don't even look like him when he was living!" he raised himself to his hind legs and flared his wings, showing off not only his small body, but his blotchy markings, "I look like him after he died!"

After his outburst, his body collapsed on the bed of leaves, trembling violently out of both anger and lingering fear, "…H-how can you call me a disgrace w-when you know I'm too small, too weak…and marked for an early death?…"

At his question, the harsh wind became more gentle, it stopped howling and shrieking like sorely disappointed ancestors and began almost humming to him. The cold wind brought on by the storm slowly became warm and wrapped around him like a pair of comforting wings. His trembling nearly stopped completely, the feeling this new wind brought on was so relaxing.

"…To be so young and be so frightened…so angry…" This voice was so soothing, one like he had never heard before. The voice of a gentle female filled his entire body with warmth, it made all his feelings of pain and fear vanish, "…It's not the size of the hero that counts, or the length of his life…" Her voice was beginning to lull Noxx to sleep, he closed his eyes as he continued to listen, "…It's what lies within that counts…It's…"

Another flash of lightning drove every comforting feeling away, sweeping in the driving cold in it's place. As Noxx's eyes snapped open, he again saw the bat skeleton standing before him. This time, it didn't fade with the light, it stayed there in front of him, grinning an insane grin. At first, it seemed as if it was going to do nothing but stand there and grin at him. It quickly proved Noxx wrong as it lunged forward, roughly slamming it's right claw into the runt's chest and forcefully pushing him backward.

Slowly, it opened it's hinged jaw and finished what the gentle female voice was going to say…only it clearly had a different, darker meaning, "…Your heart…"

Noxx's eyes widened, as the skeleton again disappeared leaving yet another wound where it's claws had been, "NO!"

Even over the pounding rain, Noxx's panicked cry reached Bacchus's searching ears. The eldest of the two owls smirked, "Looks like our target is still alive, brother!" his voice carried a hint of sick excitement, "And he sounds scared!" his booming laugh rumbled like thunder around him, "This is going to be such a satisfying hunt!"

Liber sighed, "B-brother…" He said softly, "Don't do this, please…I---"

"Speak up, Liber!" Bacchus yelled, not only cutting his brother off but making him feel worse in the process, "If I can barely hear you when only the crickets are conversing, what makes you think I can hear you over such a storm?"

Liber beat his smaller wings as hard as he could to move ahead of his older brother, with the weak stature inherited from his father and the strength of the pounding rain, it was taking all his strength just to stay in the air ahead of Bacchus. "Brother!" he yelled over the rain, though his voice was already getting weaker by the second, "We shouldn't be doing this! It's wrong and you know it!"

Somehow, Bacchus managed to ruffle his soaking wet feathers, "You're saying that avenging our father's death is wrong, Brother?! How could you say such a thing?! It's that runt's fault that he's dead!"

"It wasn't his fault!" Liber yelled, "If you had held onto the torch as tightly as you should have been, a small bat running into you wouldn't have caused you to drop it before it was time!"

Bacchus hooted in anger, "Do not try to blame this on me!" his temper had finally peaked and, without thinking, he lashed out towards his brother, striking him with both of his powerful wings in order to move ahead, "Now, come with me and make no further complaints about your duty to your fallen father!"

Liber's body couldn't take anymore, Bacchus's forceful attack caused his wings to give out. As his brother shoved passed him, he fell downwards into the violently churning lake like the small feathery rock he was. "…B-brother…" was the only thing that was able to escape his beak before he fell into the angry waters with a silent splash.

Bacchus didn't look backwards, he knew what his brother was doing, he did it each time he wanted to win an argument…he always feigned tears, playing on his own weaknesses to get what he wanted. Bacchus scowled, it wasn't going to happen this time, he wasn't going to stop and turn around just because his whiney younger brother thought it was wrong…he knew this to be the right thing…Noxx needed to be killed so Dionysus could be avenged and, therefore, rest peacefully as he deserved to.

As he entered the forest, he immediately smelled Noxx within the area. It wasn't necessarily the runt's scent as a bat he recognized, to him, all bats had the same stench…What tipped him off was the strong scent of fear and the young bat's blood, he had smelled the exact same scent right before the little killer ended his father's life.

Over his trembling and whimpering, Noxx could hear the sound of an owl's wingbeats. Normally, an owl was as silent as the wind itself, but with the rain, an owl's wingbeats caused the falling water to follow a different rhythm…a rhythm that made Noxx's heart speed up. In an attempt to hide, he clung tightly to the inner wall of the tree…he was nearly invisible to even the keenest of eyes now, but that still didn't mask his scent.

Bacchus found him rather quickly, almost disappointing him…this hunt, even though it was something as small as the runt of the Silverwing colony, was supposed to be a great satisfaction for him as well as a means of getting revenge. "…You made this far too easy, runt…" he said in a rumbling monotone as he poked his head through the nesting hole in which Noxx hid.

Noxx squeaked, he didn't expect to be found so easily, and by the biggest owl no less…Hoping to have enough room to fly, he jumped from his hiding place and tried to fly through the small opening between Bacchus and the wall of the tree. Fear claimed his judgment; rather than flying through the opening, he landed on Bacchus's face and clung to it for dear life.

Bacchus squawked, Noxx's actions caught him slightly off guard, but he easily recovered and pulled out of the nesting hole. The small bat couldn't have given himself up any more easily, intending to crush him then and there, Bacchus leaned back to slam Noxx against the trunk of the tree. But before he could do so, Noxx let go, allowing the owl to fling him backwards, and took off into the forest as fast as his little wings could take him.

Bacchus stopped himself before he was able to slam his bare head into the tree trunk and immediately took off after Noxx, "You're not as slick as you think you are, runt! I'll be hacking up your bones in a matter of hours!"

Noxx folded his ears flat against his head, not only because he didn't need to hear what Bacchus just said or might say later on, but also to streamline himself. He knew good and well that he'd never be able to outrun an owl for very long, but as long as he had strength left in his little body, he was going to try as hard as he could. He weaved quickly through the branches, dove into small spaces hoping to somehow lose Bacchus, but the more he tried the faster the owl seemed to get…It wasn't long until Noxx's wings began to protest against him, it took more and more strength to get them to move and he began to slow down drastically.

Despite the rain, despite all the flying he had been doing that day, Bacchus still had strength to spare…Strength he didn't even need to finally catch his little target. In nothing more than a few minutes, Bacchus had Noxx pinned to a tree branch beneath one of his talons, "Hardly a challenge, runt!" he laughed as he put more pressure on Noxx's body, "Now you'll pay for my father's death!"

Noxx couldn't make a single noise, Bacchus had already crushed the breath out of him…and now he was quickly working on his life. He couldn't believe this was how it was going to end for him…this just proved that he truly was no hero, that he wasn't destined to do anything great like his century dead look-a-like had done…maybe this was for the best though…if he died, he wouldn't hold the colony back, his mother could finally get some rest and Mist wouldn't have to worry about him…she could go play with her other friends…and meet stronger males who she could eventually mate with…stronger males who could protect her rather than the other way around…

Just as he was about to close his eyes and accept death's painful embrace, Bacchus's talon was jerked away. What had made him change his mind? Noxx opened his eyes and tried to bring them into focus, his vision was still blurry from lack of air, but he could see that there were two figures now in front of him. One being Bacchus --who was incredibly surprised and angry that he had been ripped away from his kill-- and the other being…he squinted through the slowly thinning rain, but he couldn't make out any familiar shape…they were huge!…but, this wasn't someone he knew…who was it?

Through his wavering vision, he could see the two figures struggling, the newcomer was clearly winning the struggle, their loud growls masking the painful noises Bacchus was making. For a moment, Bacchus broke free from the stranger's grasp and darted away, but this seemed to only amuse the stronger opponent, as he flared his large wings and took off after his prey with amazing speed.

Noxx's eyes widened as he saw his 'savior's wings…they had strange markings them…he had strange marking all over his body…that was the Demon that Aria had told him about! The one who's echo was broken and frightening deep in the Echo Chamber…Noxx thought he had been banished, at least that's what he got when he overheard Aria, Muse, and Lyre…how could he be back? Banishment was supposed to be permanent, wasn't it?

Fear and confusion brought him completely back into consciousness, but his body still ached…there was no way he was going to be able to fly away from this place if that banished demon came back for him. He curled up as much as his sore body would let him and began trembling again, "…Mom…" he began talking to himself rather loudly, "…I'm sorry I was such a burden…"

"Noxx?!"

He didn't look up, he thought he was hearing voices again…this one was far too much like his mother, he didn't want to be let down again by a figment of his imagination.

"Noxx!" his mother landed beside him and nuzzled into his side, "Sweetie? Are you okay?"

His heart skipped a beat, it really was his mother! It hurt to have her touch him, but he didn't care, he was finally in the company of someone who didn't want to kill him. He did his best to nuzzle into her as well, but he still hurt all over, "Yeah, mom, I'm fine…how---"

"You don't look fine!" she yelled softly in a heavily concerned tone, "You're cut all over! Can you even move?!"

Mist and Katarra landed behind him, "Yeah, Smallwing!" Mist said with nearly the same tone as his mother, "What happened to you?!"

Noxx couldn't help but smile at their concern, it felt good to be cared about. He opened his mouth to answer them both with an 'I'm fine' lie, but as he looked up, his eyes met Katarra's…he needed to apologize for what he did first, "…Katarra…I'm sorry…" he looked to Mist then back at Katarra, "…I'm so sorry, I really am…I messed everything up…"

Katarra smiled softly at him, "…It's okay, Noxx…I know my mother is okay, thanks to you…you don't have to worry about anything…" her eyes now reflected the same concern as Mist and Serena, "Just worry about yourself, okay?…"

"You still didn't tell us what happened, Noxx!" Mist exclaimed, "What happened?!"

He didn't speak for a moment, he decided not to tell them about the horrific vision he had during the Burning, the bat skeleton, or any of the voices he heard…just the normal stuff would be enough information for them, he was sure, "…I was attacked by an owl…the one from the Burning, the Torch Carrier…" he looked away, "…he blamed me for the death of his father…"

All three of them gasped and looked around, but again, it was Mist who spoke up, "So where's the owl now?" her eyes sparkled with excitement, "You didn't beat him up on your own, did you?!"

Noxx shook his head, Mist knew a bat his size couldn't take out an owl. "I didn't beat up the owl…" he gulped, "…The Demon drove him away…"

Katarra gasped, "Who?!"

Noxx looked at her, "The Demon…um…" he struggled to remember the other name Aria had called him, "…The Marked One…he came and fought the owl away…"

"…Aelfric…" Katarra whispered, "Where is he now?!" She demanded breathlessly, "Is he okay?!"

Noxx didn't understand why Katarra seemed to care about something Aria seemed to fear, but he didn't have the chance to answer her as Bacchus's painful screams and violent growling echoed out into the air.

"Oh my…" Serena whispered as she opened her wings, "Noxx, cling to me…I know you don't like to know, but you can't fly like this." neither of them were in any shape to fly, but the rain was letting up and her mother's protective instincts were giving her more strength, "We need to get you to the medical roost."

Noxx didn't argue, he just wanted to go home and rest for a while. He slowly and painfully moved to cling to his mother and together they flew off. Each beat of her wings caused him some small degree of pain, but it was much better than flying on his own and, despite the fact that she was soaking wet, she was so warm and she smelled of their roost…regardless of his pain, this was the most comfortable he had been in a long while.

As soon as Serena flew away with Noxx, Mist took to the air, but Katarra did not, her attention was focused on the direction the scream had some from. Concerned about her aunt, especially in this part of the forest with a 'demon' running loose, Mist landed beside Katarra and nipped at her wing, "…Katarra, are you coming?" when Katarra didn't answer, she just stared at her for a moment, seeing the longing in her eyes. To try for her attention, she nipped at Katarra's wing and gently tugged, "…Is…everything okay?…"

Katarra shook her head and blinked, "What?" she looked as if she had just come out of a trance, "Oh…yeah, I'm fine…let's head back, you still need to sleep…" She spread her wings and let Mist go first before lifting off the branch herself. She took on last glance backwards and sighed, "…Aelfric…"

On the bank of the island, Aelfric, a large black Foxwing with unusual markings, was having as much fun with his prey as he possibly could. Hearing the owl's bones break beneath his claws was an incredibly pleasing sound. Mere minutes after the attack, Bacchus lay on the sand bank, nearly every bone in his body broken, some had even broken through the skin, blood soaked the few feathers he had left on his body…this was not the way he had wanted to go…he wanted to die with honor, not at the claws of some bat…

Aelfric stood over him, grinning an insane, bloody grin, a still powerful lust for blood shone in his glazed eyes, and only incomprehensible growls rose from his throat. He had beaten the owl to the point of bloody humiliation, and yet there was still something more he wanted…He reached out, digging his claws into the skin on Bacchus's featherless chest and jerked him upwards. With such a rough motion, the owl's weak head fell back limply, his pain filled eyes only able to stare at the slowly calming lake water. As the water now gently lapped up onto the sand bank, something drifted by that brought horror to Bacchus's entire being…

Liber's limp body floated by, carried along with the current of the still lightly churning waters…Liber wasn't faking it this time…he wasn't trying to make Bacchus feel bad so they could turn back…he had really been knocked into the waters…and he had drowned…A single tear fell from Bacchus's eye, he had killed his own brother for reasons that now seemed stupid…he had lost his father because he didn't hold the torch tightly, he had killed his brother for not wanting to admit his mistake…and now this was his punishment…being held at the edge of the water, broken, bloodied, and beaten…by a bat…

Through curdled blood he tried to apologize, "…I-I'm s-s-sorry...m-my…b…broth---"

Before he had the chance to finish, Aelfric stabbed his claws right through the owl's chest and pulled out his barely beating heart. The large bat dropped his prey ---now that he had the heart, the owl itself no longer mattered--- and held the bloody organ in his claws as if it were precious treasure before shoving the whole thing in his large mouth and devouring it. As he swallowed his prize, the small ruby-like crystal on his forehead radiated a violent red light .

"You are a fool!"

Aelfric growled loudly in pain and grabbed at the gem, scratching at it, trying to get the horrible burning sensation it caused to stop.

"I do not require the hearts of owls, you should have killed the young bat it had trapped within it's talons! You have disappointed me yet again!"

With that final, angry statement, the glowing stopped and Aelfric finally calmed down. He slowly opened his eyes as if awaking from a very deep sleep and stared in horror at the bloody scene laid out before him. "Oh Nocturna!" he gasped, "Why does this keep happening?!" He slammed down on the ground with this wing, "Why couldn't you have picked someone else for this, you miserable old bat?!" he yelled directly at the ground, hoping his angry words would reach his long dead father, "Couldn't you have used yourself?! I don't want any of this, damn it!" Before he could yell anything else, the scent of blood, the dead body before him, and the heart he had just devoured caught up with him. He fell to all fours and vomited.

After a few dry heaves, he stood up, keeping his eyes closed, and lifted into the air, "I'm not becoming the 'body of Zotz'!" he continued to yell, "I refuse to complete that false god's work!" unable to think of anything else to tell his father, who may or may not have heard all he said, he flew in silence towards the forests surrounding Tree Haven looking for an are with more trees than creatures…he wasn't going to hurt anything that bled if he could help it.

The entire colony was asleep once they all arrived back at Tree Haven, Serena, and Mist took Noxx to the medical roost to treat his many wounds. Katarra wished Noxx a quick recovery, but she did not stay with them, her mind was elsewhere, on other things…on other bats…Aelfric was back in the northern forests! She'd have the chance to see him again…something she had been dreaming of since he was so wrongfully banished two years earlier.

As she flew up to her roost, she wondered if he had changed any. She assumed he'd be pretty big by now, he was the largest newborn in the colony, and she knew he'd be strong…he was strong even when they were little…she couldn't help but smile at the memories…he was the strongest newborn and she was the weakest, yet he was always so gentle with her when they played…he was easily the only friend she ever had…

Before she even reached her roost, she banked to the right, slipped through one of the many knotholes the large tree had and flew off into the trees…if he was in the northern forests, she wasn't going to wait for him to get close enough so they could meet again, she was going to go find him…whether he remembered her or not, she had to see him again.

This was it, after two years of waiting, two years of feeling alone, and a lifetime of nearly her entire colony waiting for her to die, she was finally going to leave everything behind. She felt bad about leaving her young niece, Mist had both her mother and her father, but neither of them seemed to care about her…Katarra may be the only family who still cares about her very existence…but the young pup had Noxx and Serena to turn to, she wasn't leaving her alone.

Lack of sleep and the wound in her side that constantly threatened to open made her weak and a painfully easy target for any creature determined for a midmorning snack. The fact that the morning sun reflected off her fur like a beacon didn't help her in the slightest…despite all this, she refused to keep to the shadows provided by trees and bushes…she wasn't going to hide from Aelfric…and, even though she didn't know where he was, she had a feeling that he would save her should something happen…it's just how he was…

As the wind blew through her fur, a light smile graced her face, for once in what seemed like forever, she truly felt like there was nothing weighing her down, "I'm coming, Aelfric…" Much like her mother's spirit, she was finally free.


End file.
